Shortlines look to the past as a way of the future

Short line railroads have been operating in Western Canada since the early 2000s, servicing communities that were left abandoned by the major railroads.

Locally, a solution was put in place over two and a half decades ago, which has led to a celebration this year. It was 25 years ago that Great Western Railway started to, and continues to, proudly lead the way in providing service to producers in southwest Saskatchewan.

Great Western Railway, which has a combined total of 400 mostly local shareholders, has been a fixture on the rail since 2000. Andrew Glastetter, general manager of Great Western Railway, begins to speak about shortline rail growth and how proud he is that Saskatchewan retained the highest number of short line railways in Canada.

Glastetter, who is also the President of the Western Canadian Short Line Railway Association, of which Great Western Railway is a founding member, has 19 short line members across BC, Alberta, Sask., and Manitoba, with 13 of those lines based in Saskatchewan.

While the Canadian Short Line Railway Association has remained stable in membership since 2015, there has been increased interest from other smaller railways to join and learn from one another.