Canadian National Railway has launched a second daily train service connecting Halifax to Toronto and the US Midwest in anticipation of rising volumes, despite a first-quarter decline in cargo handled at the eastern Canadian port.
The rail service, capable of hauling 250 TEU, connects Halifax to Montreal within 26 hours, Toronto in 35 hours, Chicago in 56 hours, and Detroit in 59 hours. Container volumes at Halifax were down 9.5 percent in the first quarter from the same period in 2021, according to the port.
“There are many factors driving the need for additional rail availability through Halifax,” Lane Ferguson, director of communications and marketing for the Port of Halifax, told JOC.com Friday. “Cargo volume is one aspect. This includes the new services through Halifax over the past year and anticipated steady volume over the remainder of 2022.”
Doug MacDonald, CN’s chief marketing officer, wrote in a LinkedIn post on Monday that the Halifax service was selling out daily.
“A second train plan was needed to split the workload and dramatically lowers time to market,” he wrote. “We simply want to get our goods to market as quickly as possible and added additional service on the East Coast. CN’s Eastern corridor has plenty of capacity to grow and add new trains.”
In April, PSA International completed a deal to become Halifax’s sole operator after acquiring the Fairview Cove Container Terminal, also known as Ceres Halifax.