Guelph Junction Railway Resurges

Written by Stephen C. Host
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GEXR northbound arriving in Guelph passing the expansion adjacent to PDI Liquids on Victoria Road in Guelph’s south end. Stephen C. Host photo.

Canada’s Guelph Junction Railway (GJR) is growing again. The Board of Directors resumed dividend payouts of 10% of net revenue to the sole shareholder, the City of Guelph, in 2022 after halting payments in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The railway hauled 4,700 cars in 2021, nearing its all-time record of 4,900 cars in 2019. Net earnings increased 99% over 2020 totals to C$1.05 million, with the dividend declared and paid out at $105,000.

With the closure of the nearby Orangeville-Brampton Railway (OBRY) in December 2021, former OBRY customers have largely switched to transload out of Guelph Junction Railway-based businesses. “Nearly 400 cars of business has been added from the OBRY,” said GJR General Manager Les Petroczi. It’s expected that 2022 will be a record year, with all-time high car counts since the City took the line back from the Canadian Pacific in 1998. The City of Guelph has had sole ownership of the railway since 1910, but leased the line to the CP, which operated it for 110 years. Since 1998, when CP gave up its lease, the City has taken a hands-on approach to operations and business development ,which continues with more track and customer expansion.

GJR General Manager Les Petroczi observes as a truck arrives with a load of ballast for the new Flash Freight Systems track in north
Guelph, Ontario. Crews from Pacific Northern Rail (PNR) Guelph branch are busy working on completing the track on Sept. 1 2022 as carloads are already waiting to be transloaded.
Stephen C. Host photo.

Earlier in 2022, new sidings were constructed in the south end of Guelph to support PDI Liquids Victoria Road facility, with a rough in for a second new track to be used as business expands. A run-around and storage track was added at Lewis Road in the industrial area of Guelph to support switching both PDI Massey Road (plastics transload) and AOC Resins (resin manufacturing) to reduce time spent switching both companies.

A new transload has just been completed north of Woodlawn Road for Flash Freight Systems of Ariss, Ontario, a new customer for the Guelph Junction Railway. This is Flash’s first foray into the railway industry for the trucking firm, which now has a 1,000-foot-long track that will be used to transload many commodities, starting with peas, potato flakes, lumber and cement. As soon as the track was completed, there were cars of cement waiting for the all-clear to be spotted to begin transloading. Keen observers will also note the Flash Freight track is right on the former CN right-of-way that once ran north to Fergus and Palmerston.

Supporting all this expansion, the Goderich-Exeter Railway (GEXR), GJR’s contract operator, has added a third job and hired more staff, continuing to operate the railway five days a week with 12 hours per day coverage, and weekend service as needed. GEXR is a Genesee &Wyoming company and also owns and operates a nearby rail line between Stratford and Goderich, Ontario.

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