Mr. Speaker, in my speech on rail transportation in Canada, I will focus on the need to support rail services. The aim is to reduce road transportation and to support environmental and social objectives.
As is my wont, I will tie this speech to personal experience by focusing on the industrial boom that is currently occurring in my riding. For those Canadians and parliamentarians who keep up with current events, the riding of Manicouagan is presently undergoing a mining boom and unprecedented industrial development.
The remainder of my remarks will focus on iron mining and hydroelectric projects and the announcements that have been made regarding them.
Despite the announcements by various governments, freight transportation occurs mostly over land. Freight to major work sites is primarily shipped by road trains. There are projects under way all along highway 138, between Quebec City and Sept-Îles, and even as far as Natashquan, which is where the highway ends. A little over 1,000 km separates Quebec City and Natashquan. It is possible to get there via Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean. Highway 138 also goes to Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean. Freight can therefore be transhipped and transported on highway 138 via Saguenay—Lac-Saint-Jean.
Highway 138 is currently in a terrible state of disrepair. This is not because of a lack of investment in upgrading and maintenance. It is the result of heavy vehicle traffic. I travel regularly from Ottawa to Sept-Îles. It is a 14-hour drive. I can say that it is not safe to drive along some stretches of highway 138.
Despite everything that has been done, new repairs and upgrades are required every year. Road train traffic undermines all these efforts. The weather conditions also affect the maintenance of highway 138. It is quite dangerous to drive on some stretches of highway 138. Drivers who travel on highway 138 often have to deal with road trains and trying weather conditions. The media often report accidents involving road trains on highway 138. I am not saying that it is the norm and that accidents occur every week, but they happen enough to warrant me mentioning them today.
Highway 138 presents a problem in terms of both greenhouse gas emissions and public safety. These are concerns that warrant public attention.
In my speech, I will mention the three major rail transportation companies. There are rail transportation companies in my riding, but they are private companies.
The company Québec Cartier Mining, which is located in Port Cartier, provides rail transportation. Moreover, QNSL, Quebec North Shore and Labrador, which is now the property of Rio Tinto—that is what I was told yesterday when I did my research—also provides rail transportation. Finally, there is Tshiuetin Rail Transportation Inc. It specializes in transporting passengers traveling as far as Schefferville. The company also transports iron ore. That is what I was told when I did my research.
Québec Cartier Mining ships freight from Port Cartier to Fermont. Quebec North Shore and Labrador, Rio Tinto, transports to Wabush. Tshiuetin Rail Transportation Inc, which is the third biggest passenger carrier after CN and CP—I was also told his—transports passengers to Schefferville, but has to borrow a stretch of track owned by QNSL, which is Rio Tinto Alcan.
Establishing a rail transportation network that connects Sept-Îles and Baie-Comeau is a priority, especially given the intermodal maritime–rail facilities that are located in these major cities in my riding. Maritime and rail transportation connecting these communities would significantly reduce trucking between these two points, thereby minimizing the number of accidents that result from poor road conditions and interaction between commercial and non-commercial vehicles.
Based on my experience, which is shared by industry specialists, it is important to combine different modes of transportation in my riding, including the blue highway—sea transportation—, and transport by truck or rail. This will make for an effective transportation network and not put undue pressure on the road network, which is currently the case.
Announcements were made regarding the La Romaine project, for which some of the construction material will be transported by sea. However, no concrete results have been seen yet in Havre-Saint-Pierre and the project is not yet underway. Most freight is still shipped by road.
Trucking also includes the transportation of prefabricated homes and modular units. It can be a real problem to pass a trailer transporting a modular or prefabricated home when driving on highway 138 for 7, 10 or 14 hours, if going to Natashquan.
All these factors create a need for federal authorities to invest in the development of the railway system, and particularly to ensure that these three private players do not have a monopoly. The fact is that, in the end, because they are private players, competing companies simply cannot use the tracks, unless they do like Tshiuetin Rail Transportation Inc., which must pay $50,000 per trip to use QNS&L's tracks.
Right now, competition on tracks that were built by a corporate entity is not tolerated. That is why there is a need for the government to invest and ensure that all users can benefit from the railways and infrastructures.
Industrial development in Manicouagan and the increase in international investments in the mining sector justify a significant involvement in railways by the state, to give a national dimension to infrastructures, which would then be made available to every player in the industry.
Given the many announcements of foreign investments, if all foreign partners who show up on the north shore and in Manicouagan decide to build their own rail lines, they will multiply. In my view, and in the view of many stakeholders, it would be more effective to share already existing and functional tracks and infrastructures, given their lifespan.
Now, we have to wonder whether the development of the trucking industry as the only carrier is really not the result of an oil and trucking lobby. This is another issue that was brought to my attention, since I was told that, not to long ago, Quebec had a good railway system and that it was dismantled in the 1990s. That said, I am not an expert on this issue.
I humbly submit these views to the House.