Guelph Junction Railway

The Guelph Junction Railway is a shortline railway that is owned by the City of Guelph, Ontario, and serves the city's northwest industrial park.

Contents

• Northbound guelph junction railway approching guelph
• Guelph junction railway with ex canadian pacific units
• References

The railway was incorporated in 1884 by Guelph merchants because of the indifference of the Grand Trunk Railway, which was the only choice for freight since 1856. Competition was the only answer to high rates. The intention was to build tracks 15 miles south to the CPR main line in Campbellville, Ontario. Construction began in May 1887 and this line opened on 20 August 1888. Rather than operate the link themselves, they leased it to the Canadian Pacific Railway who offered twice daily passenger service as well as freight service. The City of Guelph was a majority (70 percent) owner and in November 1910 it acquired the rest of the stock from the merchants for sole ownership.

The Canadian Pacific Railway erected a passenger station and freight shed at Priory Square in Guelph, a location which is now the River Run Centre.

An additional line was added, an 80-mile stretch of rail from Guelph to Goderich, Ontario, completed in August 1907. There were also branch lines from Linwood by way of Stratford to St. Marys and from Linwood to Listowel. Referred to as the Guelph and Goderich Railway, this stretch was also leased to the CPR (which had also incurred the cost of building it). This line was in use until 1988 when it was abandoned by the CPR.

In December 1997, the Canadian Pacific Railway did not renew the lease with Guelph Junction Railway. Undeterred, the city decided it would continue Guelph Junction Railway as an independent railway and contracted with Ontario Southland Railway (OSR) to provide the freight movement services, effective January 1, 1998. The Guelph Junction Railway, via OSR, provides customers with dual access service to the two major railways (CNR and CPR), which, along with good locally managed service, has increased traffic considerably. Much of the cargo is grain, plastics, chemicals, lumber, aggregates and other industrial products.

The railway was the first federally chartered railway in the Commonwealth of Nations to be owned by a municipality. It is one of only two in all of Canada, the other being the Greater Winnipeg Water District Railway in Manitoba.

From summer 2008 to August 2011, a 4.5 hour passenger tour service travelled the entire Guelph Junction Railway track as the Grand Junction Express with its own 1950's vintage stainless steel cars. The service was owned by private individuals operating as Destiny Tours.