Company makes bid for ONR.

• Author: Cowan, Liz
• Position: NEWS - TGR Rail Canada and Ontario Northland Railway

A small specialty railway company has made a play for Ontario Northland Railway (ONR).

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Toronto-based TGR Rail Canada offers specialty services to rail carriers across Ontario.

The company has submitted a preliminary bid for the ONR's track and assets, and submitted its underwriting with a purchase capacity in excess of $150 million, said president Kevin Street.

"We see ourselves as an underdog but we want to come in very strong. We see this as a huge opportunity and once there, and improvements are made, this will be the best thing ever."

The bid includes job preservation, maintaining the North Bay head office and car refurbishment facilities, and a commitment to passenger rail service.

The Ontario government announced the divestment of the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission in March, which employs about 950 people. Infrastructure Ontario is handling the divestment, but has not yet made the process public for ONTC's rail line, bus lines and telecommunications assets.

Street discovered about 30 companies have expressed an interest in the railway or parts of it so far.

"We see this as an opportunity to provide a regional rail service ... and the best way to do it is to run it pretty close to its present form."

Street speculated that the current Cochrane-Toronto passenger run may not be viable, but North Bay-Toronto would be, if replaced by a specialty service.

TGR pledges to continue with an improved freight service.

"Every freight customer that gets service today gets service the next day if we were successful in taking it over," he said. "Following a six-month, break-in period, the customers would get a chance to design their own service as to how they like to get it. They...