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By Graham Bruce
On the 125th anniversary of rail operating on Vancouver Island it will be decided whether rail will continue to operate or be shut down.
In October of 2010 the owners of the railway corridor, the Island Corridor Foundation, (ICF), a Foundation of regional districts & First Nations, presented the federal and provincial governments with a $15 million infrastructure investment request to secure the future of Island rail.
As things stand today without a commitment for the $15 million investment by late spring of 2011, ICF will have to develop a plan for an orderly shutdown of
Continue reading Will Rail Survive on Vancouver Island?
Globe and Mail – Published Friday, Dec. 10, 2010 8:04PM EST BRENNAN CLARKE
As a long-time veteran of the Colwood Crawl, Don Swagar expects a certain amount of rush-hour congestion during the morning commute from his home in the Western Communities to his job in downtown Victoria.
But this fall, the gridlock on the Trans-Canada Highway outside the provincial capital has been far worse than anything he’s experienced in almost 20 years of making the trip.
“There’s been a lot more traffic in the last year and a half, and since the beginning of September, it’s the worst
Continue reading Victoria commuters pin hopes on rail plan
NEWS RELEASE October. 26, 2010 ICF Rail Infrastructure Funding
ISLAND RAIL SERVICE ON TRACK FOR IMPROVEMENTS
NANAIMO – A new Nanaimo-to-Victoria passenger rail service plan for Vancouver Island was announced today by the Island Corridor Foundation.
Graham Bruce, ICF executive director, said the foundation is hopeful that with the assistance of the federal and provincial governments and VIA Rail, the plan will be operational in the next 12 to 18 months.
The strategy, developed by the ICF and Southern Rail of Vancouver Island, calls for the existing VIA passenger service to make its home terminus the ICF’s Nanaimo rail
Continue reading NANAIMO-VICTORIA SERVICE PLAN ANNOUNCED
Down she comes. Crews lower the old rail bridge at Four Mile on the Island Highway.
Talk about heavy lifting. In a middle-of-the-night operation crews removed the old rail trestle at Four Mile on the Island Highway in View Royal on August 19. Twelve nights later they replaced it with a new steel rail bridge beam and two concrete beams for the new E&N Rail Trail, a multi-use path connecting Victoria with the West Shore.
For more information on the Rail Trail project go to www.crd.bc.ca/parks/e_n_railtrail.htm.
And in with the new.
Continue reading Down with the old and up with the new – plus a rail trail – on Island Highway
from Times Colonist, Sept. 23, 2010 Victoria to apply for gas tax funds to help pay for new crossing By Kim Westad,
A regional district committee voted unanimously in favour Wednesday of supporting the City of Victoria’s application for gas tax funds to bring rail across the Johnson Street Bridge.
The decision must be ratified by the Capital Regional District board, but that is largely a formality. The vote was a crucial piece in trying to secure funding for replacement of the Johnson Street Bridge, including bringing a rail line across.
“If [the committee] had voted it
Continue reading CRD backs Johnson Bridge rail plan
Cowichan Valley Regional District director Mel Dorey, left, and friends mark Saltair's naming centenary in the style of the time.
In period costumes and amid antique cars, in August the residents of Saltair celebrated the centenary of their community’s naming by the E & N Railway.
In 1910 the railway decided to change its stop from what was known as the Old Plantation to a point farther north. It needed a name for the community which would host this new stop so held a name-the-train-stop contest.
Eleanor Southin, wife of the Ladysmith postmaster, had visited
Continue reading Celebrating 100 years of Saltair
The Cowichan Station Area Association, the first Vancouver Island group to Adopt a Mile on the rail corridor, completed a weed ‘n whack on June 6.
With Cowichan Valley Regional District grant assistance the association is also putting a new foundation under the old station and beautifying its grounds. Another weeding day along the tracks is planned for later in the year.
Community groups are invited to Adopt a Mile to clear growth along the rail corridor as an alternative to herbicide use.
Cowichan Station volunteers clear weeds from their adopted mile of
Continue reading Cowichan Station Adopts a Mile
The Ministry of Transportation released the following today:
E&N RAIL CORRIDOR STUDY RELEASED
VICTORIA – The Province and the Island Corridor Foundation (ICF) have released a study that evaluates the economic potential and identifies future opportunities for the E&N rail line, Transportation and Infrastructure Minister Shirley Bond announced today.
“The E&N railway has been an important component of the transportation network on Vancouver Island for 130 years,” said Bond. “We’ve worked with the Island Corridor Foundation to determine what conditions and economic circumstances need to be in place for
Continue reading MOT Releases Rail Corridor Study
The Island Corridor Foundation (ICF) is a collaboration of First Nations and Regional Districts to protect the rail corridor that extends from Victoria to Courtenay and inland to Port Alberni. The corridor connects communities and provides opportunity for tourism, commuter and freight rail services and for recreation. It belongs to Vancouver Islanders in perpetuity.
A thriving rail corridor means green transportation for business and tourism as well as for commuters and local passengers.
Interested in establishing your business by the corridor? For information about leasing and property opportunities along the Island Corridor email property manager Dick Wright at dickwright@shaw.ca or ICF executive director Graham Bruce at granneke@shaw.ca.
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