Soy Canada is happy about the federal government’s recent tabling of legislation related to improving the transport of grains in the country.
Bill C-49 is called the Transportation Modernization Act and it includes accountability provisions related to railway reporting requirements, reciprocal penalties into service level agreements, defining “adequate and suitable” rail service and other measures that help ensure shippers are provided with dependable service.
Chair of Soy Canada Mark Huston says the reforms are a positive step towards enhancing the soybean industry’s ability to transport product to domestic and international markets.
According to Soy Canada, the soybean industry has nearly doubled over the last decade, with production in western Canada forecasted to reach 3 million metric tonnes this year.
The new legislation also contains new, potentially complex “long-haul” interswitching provisions and it is unclear whether the new interswitching mechanism will ensure shippers have access to competitive rates between rail service providers.
