Transport committee  Yes, I would agree with that. That sounds very problematic, because you'd have to mediate with four parties, for example, in the New Westminster Quay, each one of them requiring the time, energy, and effort of both the individuals and the government and lawyers to deal with it. S

Transport committee  I agree with the comments everyone else has made. There are noise, vibration, and pollution concerns. But I would not want to see this bill delayed to deal with environmental issues, because those could be covered under Environment Canada. But really, that's the choice of the com

Transport committee  Could we ask you guys to have a time deadline to respond and put together a new bill?

Transport committee  I tried contacting—as did my father and many other residents—the public relations department, the manger of rail yard operations, and even the president of CN, for example. They don't even want to sit down and discuss it. I can't arrange a time to talk to them. If there was legi

Transport committee  I'd like to add one other item, which is that if the rail companies were so willing to work at mediation and at resolving noise complaints, they never would have challenged the authority of the Canadian Transportation Agency in the first place. The whole reason we're here today i

Transport committee  That is very true. Today I sent you by e-mail an article from the Environmental Protection Agency in the U.S. They did a study on the Chicago rail yard. They were able to reduce their idling times by 80% simply through the use of new technology, and the payback period on it was t

Transport committee  Sure. That's if they're in proximity to residential areas. Yes.

Transport committee  Yes, my preference would be for them not to operate in the area at all. How do you monitor and regulate that? That's just adding another layer of supervision and monitoring. Somebody has to do the job, collect the data, provide the reports. To me, that seems very inefficient. Why

Transport committee  I would suggest a combination: set concrete standards with definitive guidelines and give the Canadian Transportation Agency the ability to regulate the rail companies at the same time, in case an item falls outside of the standards that may be put into the act.

Transport committee  In terms of voluntary compliance, I think all the rail companies have failed miserably. As recently as two months ago I sent a letter to the president of CN, Hunter Harrison, and they haven't even bothered to acknowledge receipt of the letter or to reply to it. Two or three years

Transport committee  Mr. Chairman and committee members, I would like to thank you for this opportunity to present our community's concerns and recommendations regarding the amendments contained in clause 29 of Bill C-11. With the support of Mayor Wayne Wright and James Crosty, the president of the Q