Mr. Speaker, the bridge was among lands transferred by the government to CN in the early 1990s. CN is the owner of the bridge, and this means CN is responsible for the operation, maintenance and safety of the bridge. The federal government provided $6 million to support CN in fulfilling its commitment to complete a major restoration of the bridge. CN has confirmed that the bridge is safe and continues to carry out regular annual maintenance.
The government has initiated court proceedings to protect taxpayers and ensure that CN, as the owner of the bridge, fulfills its obligations to complete the restoration of the bridge and ensure its long-term viability. Again, in August 2013, Transport Canada inspected the rail section of the bridge that falls under jurisdiction and did not identify any problems with the rail section of the bridge. The road section is under provincial jurisdiction.