(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.

December 22, 2021: Report Synopsis

Loads on Wheels

System loads on wheels declined yesterday returning below 7,800 cars following three consecutive days of increases that had pushed system volumes north of 8,000 cars.

Heading into the back half of week 21, CN volumes continue to trend down and CP volumes are running ahead of last week’s pace.

Cars Not Moving

System idle car counts increased marginally once again yesterday but remain below 2,200 cars, down from the recent high of more than 2,800 cars on Sunday.

Yesterday’s increase is driven by higher counts for CN in the Vancouver corridor while CP counts declined marginally.

Port Unloads

West coast unloads (524) improved from the prior day fuelled by a 55% jump in Vancouver unloads while Prince Rupert reported no unloads as anticipated.

Thunder Bay unloads (280) saw their best day of the week yesterday.

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.