Deregulation and Abandonment
Deregulation in the Canadian railway industry in 1987 was all that was required to encourage CN to successfully abandon its rail system. By September, 1988 it had abandoned the money-losing service (see Newfoundland Railway) in Newfoundland, and in July, 1989 abandonment was announced for Prince Edward Island. On December 31, 1989, the John Hamilton Gray carried the last operational rail cars and locomotives off Prince Edward Island. Cynics of CN's decision have noted that residents of Prince Edward Island voted completely in favour of the opposition Liberals in the 1988 Canadian federal election, which may have possibly tipped the government's hand in not attempting to preserve federally-subsidized rail service in the province.
Salvage crews worked throughout 1990, 1991 and 1992 removing tracks, cross-ties, and other railway facilities. In return for agreeing to not oppose CN's abandonment, the provincial government was given compensation by the federal government in the form of a $200 million one-time highway subsidy for selected upgrades to major provincial roads to account for increased wear from trucks.
In 1994, the provincial government purchased the entire right-of-way for the former PEIR from CN. Throughout the late 1990s, the provincial government in cooperation with the Trans-Canada Trail foundation and various community volunteers, worked to complete the Confederation Trail system. Today 75% of total PEIR mileage is open as public recreation trails with the remaining 25% estimated to be opened over the next decade.
Read more about this topic: Prince Edward Island Railway
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