The word "unreasonable" was chosen because it is currently used by the agency. With expressions such as "as little noise as possible" or "minimize", I can foresee a legal problem. For instance, the word "minimum" is very subjective. What do we mean by "minimize noise"? It must be understood that regardless of what the agency does, clause 95.1 establishes a standard that the railway company must take into account in its operations. The standard must be clear and comprehensible to the company. The word "minimum" would cause a legal problem because it has a broad, ambiguous meaning. It may be very difficult for a railway company to determine what is the minimum level of noise possible.
We are aware of the fact that the expression "as little noise as possible" was in the previous bill. The problem with this expression is that Canadian jurisprudence has but few decisions, if any at all, dealing with the meaning of the expression "as little as possible". This concept is not used frequently to establish a standard, whereas "unreasonable" is a concept found in nearly every existing federal law. Furthermore, it is a concept that the agency must apply on a daily basis. It is included primarily in air transportation provisions.
There is abundant jurisprudence dealing with what is meant by the word "unreasonable". When this bill comes into effect, it will be easy for the railway sector to determine whether or not it is respecting its obligations. There will be no ambiguity. At the same time, when a complaint is filed, the agency will not have any difficulty determining whether or not something is unreasonable. That is why the word "unreasonable" was used.