The short answer is yes. The dilemma that short lines find themselves in is that they are very low-density operators. Our industry is the most capital-intensive industry in the country by far. We spend 20% of our revenues—not of our profits, but of our revenues—every year on infrastructure, and that's just to maintain the system.
Short-line railways just don't generate enough revenue to be able to do that on a consistent, ongoing basis. What happens over time, and it has been happening in the last few years, is that the infrastructure starts to degrade. We're now seeing a number of short-line railways in Canada with operating ratios greater than one, i.e., they are losing money on their operations, and that's simply not sustainable.
We have in a number of jurisdictions tried to pursue an infrastructure upgrade program. The most successful so far has been in Quebec, where we have a $75 million package—split three ways between the province, the federal government, and the industry—that is specifically targeted to short lines for upgrading their infrastructure. We have a package before the Ontario government now for slightly less than $90 million to do the same thing, and we are talking to other provincial jurisdictions across the country on precisely that issue.
We believe very strongly that the loss of that capability would be frankly catastrophic to small towns in Canada and to regions. They are critically important to the local economy and development. Just to give you a sense of the importance of these short lines, 25% of all the rail freight, where it originates or at final destination, moves on these railways. They are not at the margin; they are a very important part of the overall system.
We would encourage the committee to pursue that line of inquiry with the government and others. If you need more details, Mr. Chair, I would be happy to provide them.