Cabinet overturns order to repair Prince of Wales Bridge

The federal cabinet has rescinded a government agency's decision that would have forced the City of Ottawa to repair the Prince of Wales Bridge to make it suitable for rail traffic.

City solicitor Rick O'Connor informedMayor Jim Watson, transit commissioners and other members ofcouncilof the cabinet order in a memo Tuesday afternoon.

According to O'Connor,the order-in-council means the city will no longer have to fight the decision at the Federal Court of Appeal, a hearing that wasscheduled to take place later this week.

In February 2018, the Canada Transportation Agency (CTA)ordered the city to repair tracks leading up to the bridgethat had been ripped up during LRTconstruction.

Against national policy

In a statement, a spokesperson for Transport Minister Marc Garneau said the CTA decision "misinterpreted" provisions of the Canada Transportation Act by creating a perception that federally regulated rail lines need to be in "near-operable" conditions at all time.

An order-in-council dated April 5said the agency's decision went against national policy because it would force a railway company to invest in an "unused and non-profitable railway line," or discontinue it permanently.

The order-in-council said such a decisioncould discourage railway companies from buying available rail lines for future use.

Cabinet also rejected a petition from Moose Consortium Ltd., whichwanted to use the bridge as part of a commuter rail project spanning the Ottawa River.

Joseph Potvin, director-general of Moose Consortium, said the company had wanted cabinet to clear up a portion of the wording of the CTA decision that appeared to require an operator to be actively trying to use the rail line.

"Our request to the minister was to simplyremove the ambiguity from the decision and just order them to have the track fixed, to reconnect it," Potvin said.

He said he's disappointed with the cabinet decision.

"Cabinet is saying that it is allowing for the illegal dismantlement of a federal railwaythree years after the fact," he said.

The consortium filed the initial complaint with the CTA in 2016 after part of the track was dismantled to build an entrance to the Bayview LRT station.

The CTA decision said the city didn't follow the proper procedure for the discontinuance of a rail line, which would include putting it up for sale and negotiating in good faith with potential buyers.

Garneau's office said the decision would be subject to judicial review and the decision does not affect whether the bridge could someday be used for LRT between Ottawa and Gatineau.