Rail strike would halt B.C.’s West Coast Express commuter train, says TransLink

The operator of British Columbia’s commuter train that shuttles thousands of people across the Lower Mainland says it won’t be able to run if a strike halts Canada’s two biggest railways this week.

Metro Vancouver transport provider TransLink says the West Coast Express operates on rail owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. and can’t run without that company’s dispatchers and railworkers.

Negotiations between Canadian National Railway Co., Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. and the Canada Teamsters Rail Conference have struggled, and unless agreements are reached service at both companies is slated to stop at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Thursday.

The West Coast Express operates weekdays between downtown Vancouver and Mission, making stops in communities including Pitt Meadows and Port Coquitlam.

A statement from TransLink says if the West Coast Express is unable to operate, more buses will be added to help move commuters.

A strike would trigger the first-ever simultaneous work stoppage at the country’s biggest rail companies, whose trains haul a combined $1 billion worth of goods per day.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press