The Social Impact of Railways

We recently received the following comment from Mr. Josef Bossart, a Parry Sound, Ontario resident, whose blog, Parry Sounds & Sights, discusses a variety of subjects, including rail transportation issues within the community. Mr. Bossart submitted this comment in a reply to the President of Ontario Southland Railway, Mr. Jeff Willsie, in the recent post FAQ: Contacting Canada’s Two Largest Railways With Your Railway Noise and Vibration Problem.

Those of you familiar with Mr. Willsie through this blog will know that it is his frequently-repeated opinion that:

“If you do not like living beside the railway you should move. The railway cannot move.”
Jeff Willsie
President
Ontario Southland Railway

While we respect Mr. Willsie’s right to his opinion, we cannot agree with it.

All too often, it seems, residential conflicts occur after railways initiate changes to their operations, resulting in devastating consequences in the quality of life for impacted residents.

Many of the affected residents had previously lived with their railway neighbours for many years with few difficulties. As Mr. Bossart describes below, the changes that the railway would ultimately make often could not possibly have been anticipated. Residents then found that they were expected to absorb the impact of the railway’s changed operations, often without notice or consultation.

We believe it’s time, as rail transportation continues to grow, to opt for a more socially-sustainable approach. Ideally, this should integrate, not exclude, the community in the planning stages of changes to rail operations. It’s time for railways to cooperatively work with resident stakeholders to find mutually acceptable solutions.

We don’t agree that the only option for people affected by railway operations is to move.

We think that the only moving that is necessary here is a shift in attitude by any similarly-thinking railway executives that their company’s noise, vibration, and second-hand smoke from idling diesel locomotives is somehow not their problem, and impact on the community, not their concern.

We hope that the President of Ontario Southland Railway for whom the following was written will, at least, consider Mr. Bossart’s remarks below:

“Jeff:

You are quite right, the railway can’t move. But the railway can invest in technology and adopt practices that reduce their impact on local communities.

The railway of the 21st century is not the same as that of the 19th or 20th centuries. Trains are longer, heavier and noisier, with a greater impact on people and the environment. People who moved into their homes 10, 20, 30 and 50 years ago are facing issues related to rail traffic they had no reason to expect.

The railways to some extent operate at the pleasure of the Canadian public. The economic importance of the railways is significant, and because of that the federal government has generally looked the other way when communities raise concerns about unreasonable levels of noise, vibration and pollution.

But what has been the norm in the past may not be the norm for the future. A number of countries are starting to impose serious restrictions on industries long considered to be national assets that operate at the expense of the environment and society.

There seems to be an opportunity for the railways and communities to discuss how best to mitigate the impact of greater rail traffic. But it seems the railways don’t even want to discuss the issue as it may be seen as an admission that all is not right and perhaps the communities have a reasonable point. And any solutions the industry can imagine would reduce efficiency and negatively impact profits. So it has become a taboo subject in the railway boardrooms.

But in the end there will need to be some plan to mitigate the impact of the ever increasing railway traffic. So Jeff, hang tight and keep to the party line. You may well be retired before the industry actually has to productively address the impact of their business on people and the environment.” 

- Josef Bossart -

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