John D. Boyd | Mar 31, 2011 11:55AM EDT
Canadian National Railway sold a section of track in and around Toronto to the Ontario agency Metrolinx for about $308 million.
It is part of CN's Kingston subdivision, and the company said that track is used primarily for commuter and passenger rail operations in eastern Toronto. Metrolinx operates the GO Transit passenger rail and bus systems, and this deal gives the agency ownership of 61 percent of tracks it uses for GO Transit's rail commuter service.
But the line also serves freight customers, so CN President and CEO Claude Mongeau said the sales agreement gives CN continued operating rights there "to ensure continued service to its freight customers."
The rail line acquired by Metrolinx is a two- and three-track rail corridor, the parties said, that runs east of Union Station in downtown Toronto to a junction near Whites Road in Pickering, Ont., where it connects with GO Transit's separate rail right-of-way.
-- Contact John D. Boyd at jboyd@joc.com.
