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 Quayside Community Board, I am representing the interests of 2,000 residents in New Westminster who reside within 200 metres of the New Westminster rail yard.
All of us here today recognize rail yard operations can create a significant amount of noise that negatively impacts many tens of thousands of Canadians living in close proximity to rail yards across Canada. The amendments contained in clause 29 of Bill C-11 need to be significantly modified if they are to truly address the concerns Canadians have with railway noise in close proximity to high-density residential areas such as the New Westminster Quay.
We recognize that the amendments in clause 29 of Bill C-11 were formulated in a way that requires the railways and concerned parties to try to resolve the noise problem through mediation. While this may be a desirable approach, it is not one that is realistic. We have supplied the committee with our report on the New Westminster rail yard operations and the efforts made over many years by local residents to try to work with the railways to eliminate or mitigate noise emanating from the rail yards. The bottom line is that they do not see this as their problem, and they see little or no need to do anything about this problem.
We have also supplied the committee with our rationale of why the amendments contained in clause 29 of Bill C-11 should be modified to better protect the interests of all residents who reside in low-rise and high-rise apartments in close proximity to rail yards. The following are suggested changes to the amendments contained in clause 29 of Bill C-11. These modifications are only suggestions. You may know a better way of wording the amendments to meet our common objective.
We recommend that proposed section 95.1 be changed to read:
When constructing or operating a railway, a railway company must not cause unreasonable noise and must comply fully with all agency guidelines issued under subsection 95.2, taking into account a) its obligations under sections 113 and 114 if applicable, b) its operational requirements, and c) the area where the construction or operation takes place.
We also recommend that the following new subsection be added to proposed section 95.1:
Notwithstanding 95.1, where a rail yard or line is within 300 meters of high-density residential housing, railways can only shunt, couple, decouple rail cars and idle engines between the hours of 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday to Friday, excluding statutory holidays, unless authorized by the Minister of Transportation on a temporary basis during a National Emergency.
Under this proposed section, we would also recommend the following addition: “At no time shall a rail engine be left idling.”
We would like to see proposed section 95.2 changed to reflect the following points:
1) The Agency shall issue and publish for public access, in any manner that it considers appropriate, guidelines with respect to a) the elements that the Agency will use to determine whether a railway company is complying with section 95.1, and b) the process of collaborative resolution of noise complaints relating to the construction or operation of railways.
2) The Agency must consult with interested parties including municipalities where there are rail operations before issuing any guideline.
3) The guidelines are not statutory instruments within the meaning of the Statutory Instruments Act.
For the balance of the amendments contained in clause 29 of Bill C-11, it is not clear what sanctions, if any, would be possible if a railway does not comply fully with an order from the agency. We need to ensure that the Canadian Transportation Agency has the authority to levy sanctions. We must also ensure that these sanctions can be enforced. Otherwise, why would the rail companies feel compelled to comply with any order or ruling from the Canadian Transportation Agency?
Mr. Chairman, I thank the committee for taking the time to listen to our concerns and recommendations regarding clause 29 of Bill C-11.
Thank you.