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Southern Ontario Railway
Hagersville Subdivision
CN Brantford
35.1
Simpson
33.5
ECP Spur
31.5
Blastech Spur
31.0
Rembos Spur
27.3
Onondaga
Wesont Lumber Spur
18.7
Caledonia
Nestle Purina Spur
13.0
CGC spur
9.0
Hagersville
old CN CASO Sub
4.7
Garnet
4.4
old CN Cayuga Sub
0.0
Nanticoke
Lake Erie Works Spur
3.17-mile (5.10 km) Hydro Spur
SOR Logo Pre-Genesee & Wyoming Purchase
Logo Pre-G&W

The Southern Ontario Railway (reporting mark RLHH)[1] is a shortline railroad in the province of Ontario, owned and operated by Genesee & Wyoming Canada Inc., the Canadian subsidiary of Genesee & Wyoming Inc. It operated 69 miles (111 km) of track from Brantford to Nanticoke, Ontario,[2] from 1998 to 2018. The railroad began operations in 1998, and was acquired by RailAmerica two years later.[3] It had interchanges with the Canadian National Railway at Hamilton via trackage rights, Brantford and Paris, and interchanges with the Canadian Pacific Railway at Hamilton.[2]

On July 23, 2012, Genesee & Wyoming Inc. announced that it intended to purchase RailAmerica in a deal valued at $1.39 billion.[4][5] Approval of the purchase was granted by the U.S. Surface Transportation Board on December 19, 2012.[6]

On September 18, 2018, operation of most of the Hagersville sub returned to CN.[7] The Hamilton operations returned to CN December 13, 2018. SOR retains terminal operations at Nanticoke, and the line from Nanticoke to Garnet, mile 5.7, where it interchanges with CN.

The railroad's traffic comes mainly from steel, agricultural products, petroleum products, and chemicals. The SOR carries more than 44,000 carloads a year.[2]

Hagersville Subdivision

The Hagersville Subdivision extends from Nanticoke (Mile 0.0) to Simpson (Mile 35.0). Rail movements on this subdivision are governed by the Occupancy Control System of the Canadian Rail Operating Rules (CROR). While SOR operated the line, it was supervised by a rail traffic controller in North Bay, Ontario. The maximum authorized speed on this line is 30 miles per hour (48 km/h). Two or more trains operate daily on the Subdivision. The Hydro Spur (Mile 0.0) extends south off of the Hagersville Subdivision and descends southward to Lake Erie at a 1% grade. An Imperial Oil refinery is located just south and east of Mile 0.0 and an Ontario Hydro facility is located at the southern extremity of the spur (Mile 3.17). Train movements on the spur are governed by CROR Rule 105 and have a maximum authorized speed of 10 mph.[8]

Locomotive Roster

Model Maker Numbers Build Date Remarks
EMD GP38-2 EMD 2081 11-1966 (Rebuilt 2016) Ex. MEC 258
EMD GP38-2 EMD 2111 12-1972 Ex. SOU 5058, NS 5058
GMD GP40-2W GMD 3049 03-1975 Ex. CN 9554
GMD SD40-2 GMD 3403 09-1966 Ex. CP 5516
EMD SD40-2 EMD 3404 12-1970 Ex. PC 6260
EMD GP9 EMD 4001 08-1959 Ex. SP 5872
EMD GP9 EMD 4003 09-1959 Ex. SP 5888

References

  1. ^ a b "AAR Railroad Reporting Marks". RailServe. Retrieved February 18, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c "Southern Ontario Railway". Genesee & Wyoming Canada Inc. August 4, 2014. Retrieved September 10, 2014.
  3. ^ "RailAmerica's Empire". Trains Magazine. Kalmbach Publishing. June 2010.
  4. ^ "Genesee & Wyoming to pay $1.39B for RailAmerica". STL Today.com. Associated Press. July 23, 2012. Retrieved July 23, 2012.[permanent dead link]
  5. ^ "UPDATE 4-Genesee & Wyoming to buy RailAmerica for $1.4 billion". Reuters. July 23, 2012. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  6. ^ Surface Transportation Board, Decision, Case No. 42772 Archived April 29, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, December 19, 2012
  7. ^ Railway Age, November 20, 2018
  8. ^ "Railway Investigation Report R09T0057" (PDF). The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB). August 4, 2010. Retrieved September 10, 2014.

External links

Media related to Southern Ontario Railway at Wikimedia Commons