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Supply Chain Resiliency Watch – July 14, 2020 JUL 14 2020 | Producers | Blog Post

(Daily updates will be available on the Alberta Pulse Growers website.)

Pulse Canada and the CSCA are partners of the Ag Transport Coalition (ATC)*, which tracks performance of the Canadian railway network for the movement of grain.

A daily report has been created to provide stakeholders with insight on the performance of the Canadian rail system as it attempts to remain resilient during the COVID-19 pandemic and continues recovering from a series of physical network disruptions in the months of January and February 2020.

July 14, 2020: Report Synopsis

Loads on Wheels

· System traffic volumes increased yesterday reflecting a significant increase on CP (17%) offset by lower volumes on CN.

· The increase in CP volumes yesterday was concentrated in the Vancouver corridor which accounted for nearly all of the system increase.

· Based on confirmed shipper orders for week 50 (this week), it is expected that traffic volumes will remain strong with more than 9,000 confirmed orders for ATC shippers.

Loads Not Moving

· Counts increased substantially yesterday (+1,000 cars) for the second straight day, reflecting higher counts for both CN and CP.

· CN saw counts increase across all corridors, most prominently Prince Rupert where counts nearly doubled and are now just below 850 cars.

· CP saw counts increase in the Vancouver and Thunder Bay corridors.

Port Performance

· West coast port unloads (1,152) returned above the 1,000 car threshold reflecting good unloads at Vancouver and below average unloads at Prince Rupert.

· West coast vessel counts continue to hover around 30-35 vessels per day, a consistent range over the last few months.

· Vessel counts declined overnight reflecting lower counts at Prince Rupert (-1) and Vancouver (-2) – now at 34.

· Two vessels are now scheduled to arrive at Prince Rupert and 12 vessels currently scheduled for arrival at Vancouver over the next two weeks.

All daily resiliency reports are available on the Pulse Canada website.

*The Ag Transportation Coalition is comprised of the Canadian Canola Growers Association (CCGA), Alberta Wheat Commission (AWC), Pulse Canada, Manitoba Pulse Growers Association (MPGA), Western Grain Elevator Association (WGEA), Saskatchewan Wheat Development Commission, Inland Terminal Association of Canada (ITAC) and the Canadian Special Crops Association (CSCA).

For more information, go to www.agtransportcoalition.com.