ONTC derailed: Crown corporation to be dismantled.

• Author: Cowan, Liz
• Position: FIVE NEWSMAKERS - Ontario Northland Transportation Commission

A provincial government announcement in March spelled the end of the line for the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission (ONTC).

Northern Development and Mines Minister Rick Bartolucci delivered the government's plan to divest itself of the century-old Crown corporation at a news conference in Sudbury.

Citing an "extremely difficult decision," he said the business is good, but the business model is not.

"Stagnant ridership, along with the ONTC's unsustainable financial path, are key factors in today's announcement," he said at the press conference.

The announcement came as a surprise to municipal and union leaders who stated that no consultation had occurred. They were equally upset that the announcement was made in Sudbury, and not North Bay, where the ONTC is headquartered and the majority of its 950 employees are located.

The announcement was denounced across the North by municipal leaders, citizens and union representatives. Despite the protests and municipal council resolutions, the government remains unchanged in its position to divest all business lines of the ONTC.

ONTC's full-service telecommunications company, Ontera, was the first of the corporation's business lines to be put up for sale. Infrastructure Ontario released a request for qualifications for interested buyers earlier this fall.

The process will pre-qualify and shortlist potential buyers who will then be invited to respond to a request for proposals that will be issued before the end of the year.

The government cited stagnant ridership numbers for the Northlander, and said a subsidy of $400 per passenger is spent.

The General Chairpersons' Association (GCA), which represents all unions at the ONTC, disputed the government's claim that ridership numbers were stagnant. A spokesperson for the group said ridership was up and stated that per capita, the Northlander moved more people than VIA Rail.

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On Sept. 28, the last Northlander left Cochrane to travel to Toronto on a nostalgic trip that was greeted by residents along the stops. That same day, the last Northlander out of Toronto made its way to Cochrane for the last time. That service was to be replaced by a bus service.

In October, a "new deal" for Ontario Northland was proposed by the GCA. The proposal called for transferring ownership of the railroad and other assets of the provincially-held ONTC to a new ports authority to be operated under the Canada Marine Act. The first step in this...