Transport committee  The provision requires that in the group FOA the matter be common to the shippers who are asking for the matter to be resolved. When they file their application with the agency, there is a provision included in the legislation that allows the railway to contest, if they believe that the matter is not common to all of them, and to appeal to the agency.

Transport committee  As you know, running rights are basically a mechanism whereby one railway uses the line of another railway. We do have lots of examples of running rights in Canada, particularly in western Canada, where both CN and CP have reached a commercial agreement whereby both railways operate over CP's line in one direction and over CN's line in the other direction, through the Rockies.

Transport committee  I can tell you just last Friday I spent a whole day with the terminal operators on the north shore, and we're looking at these very issues. The issue is really much more one of looking at how do we accommodate the growth that is happening, and future growth. The railways were at the meeting as well, and I think we've come up with a series of measures over the next few months, including doing a study of the north shore terminals and the rail access there as part of the Asia Pacific Gateway initiative, looking at how we can improve the rail and road access into the terminals and to make those work a lot better.

Transport committee  We will earmark whatever is necessary. We already have a preliminary budget for the study. Some of that will come into the next fiscal year. We will provide whatever is necessary for the review.

Transport committee  The level of service review is going to address the type of railway service that we have in Canada, and it will definitely compare to what is happening in the United States and Europe and Asia. You should know, however, that both Canada and the United States have the most productive rail system of anywhere in the world because they are dedicated on rail lines for freight.

Transport committee  As you mentioned, Mr. Volpe, there is an elaborate process—not totally addressed in this bill, but it was addressed through Bill C-11—whereby, if one of the main railways, either CN or CP, no longer finds a line suitable for its business, which is providing the transcontinental business, it offers it up for sale to what are called short line railways.

Transport committee  Yes.

Transport committee  Yes, the agency must assess this impact. Imposing limits on working hours would greatly slow down the economy. Mr. Bell explained how such measures could impact on the Asia-Pacific Corridor Initiative. Currently, all companies are working 24 hours a day, and railways have to keep up with that.

Transport committee  Yes.

Transport committee  I think that in Oakville, near Toronto, the agency asked Canadian National railways to change its schedules in order to lessen the impact on the public.

Transport committee  If we start including decibel levels here, and they're high, and you get a complaint, and a citizen is complaining that the noise is too loud, then if the agency goes in and determines that in fact the decibel levels are within the regulation, the agency's hands are tied; they can't take any action that potentially would allow the agency to correct whatever is causing the problem that the complaint is about.

Transport committee  They have it for locomotives only. It doesn't talk about railway operations.

Transport committee  Our locomotives follow the U.S. requirements because they're made in the U.S., yes.

Transport committee  No, and our suggestion is that you don't need them because they already meet the U.S. requirements.

Transport committee  I would say it would, and I'm going to read something to you. You heard from witnesses, I believe, who said that the WHO has regulations. The WHO does not have regulations. I'm going to read from a document. I'll read exactly what it says: WHO has responded in two main ways: by developing and promoting the concept of noise management, and by drawing up community noise guidelines.