(Regular 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 new grain network status report has been created to provide stakeholders with comprehensive insight on the performance of the Canadian rail system for the 2020-2021 grain year. The report provides information and data on the status of the rail network as of midnight the previous day.

The railway performance data reported in these reports reflect the performance of rail shipments specifically for grain shippers participating in the Ag Transport Coalition’s railway performance measurement program – estimated to encompass approximately 90-95% of western Canadian originated grain shipments by rail.

October 20, 2021: Report Synopsis

Loads on Wheels

• System loads on wheels declined yesterday for the third straight day as some congestion begins to move through the system.

• The decline yesterday is driven by a significant reduction for CN that saw loads on wheels for CN fall below 5,100 cars for the first time in seven days.

Cars Not Moving

• System idle car counts declined notably yesterday for the second straight day falling below the 3,000 car threshold.

• The improvement principally reflects lower counts for CN which saw counts decline by a third.

Port Unloads

• West coast unloads (826) improved yesterday driven by improved unloads at Prince Rupert while Vancouver unloads continue to fall short of expectations.

• Thunder Bay (258) declined yesterday falling below the 300 car mark for only the third time in the last 9 days.

For more information, go to www.agtransportcoalition.com* 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). All daily network status reports are available on the Pulse Canada website.