CN Rail has spurned a request that it pay its share of drainage costs to the town of Plymouth-Wyoming and the township of Warwick.
Mayor Gary Atkinson said “CN Rail’s refusal to pay municipalities owed money is disrespectful to local taxpayers who fund municipal services.
“CN Rail continues to benefit from Ontario’s drainage system but will not pay it’s fair share, leaving the amount owing to fall on the local rural communities”.
In 2022, CN Rail revised its long-held participation in the Drainage Act, including payment of allocated assessments and advised Ontario municipalities that the Corporation will no longer be paying for drainage assessments for the installation and maintenance of municipal drain infrastructure in rural Ontario.
“We demand that CN Rail pay its outstanding balance to our municipalities right away,” said Mayor Case.
“It’s outrageous that CN Rail thinks it is above the law and that their financial burden should be borne by our rural community members.”
The municipalities said CN’s refusal is unlawful and that it is withholding millions of dollars for drainage that benefits its operations.
Ontario Agriculture Minister Lisa Thompson has said Ontario believes the Drainage Act applies to all federally-regulated railways, but there's no evidence she has done anything about it.
