Residents and business owners that access their properties via a private rail crossing at mile 34.4 of a rural subdivision northwest of Capreol, ON are upset by a CN decision to barricade the crossing and will essentially leave them without land access to their properties.

The barricade set to be put into place on October 14th, 2014 will directly affect approximately 16 property owners as well coutnless fisherman, hunters and outdoor enthusiast that use the crossing to access Thor Lake and areas north of the lake.

We spoke to Glen Childs, year round resident and owner/operator of Mckees Camp, a fishing and hunting lodge at Thor Lake. Childs explained that he has used the crossing for more than 40 years to access his property. He claims that the crossing was put in approximately 60 years ago when the Hydro pole line was install and although it is classified by CN as a private crossing, it’s anything but with the general public using it since it’s installation." Childs went on to say "I’ve been here for 41 years and there has never been an accident at this crossing that I’m aware of. This will effectively put me out of business.”

CN has indicated in emails to Childs that they “will be blocking the crossing shortly as it currently has been flagged under the Transport Canada Guidelines as not having sufficient sightlines.”

The email went on further to say:

Currently there are no agreements with the camp society or individuals who are using the crossing however this is something that CN may entertain in the future, granted the crossing made safe. As you are aware CN has contractors on site working on our siding and as such you may want to contact them to obtain a price for blasting the rock which is currently causing the restricted sightline.

The alternative would be the installation of an active warning system which is costly and will have annual maintenance fees and in this situation would not be the recommended method of protection unless rock blasting is not feasible.

“CN has indicated it is a sight line issue but my opinion is they are looking for someone else to pay the costs but they are way too high for either myself or all the other camp owners to be able to afford." Childs stated "My opinion is that CN should make the necessary repairs…Although I’m certainly not a Lawyer, I would think that CN should not be allowed to do this. I have a road running through my camp that carries on to other properties that I certainly would not be allowed to close under this Roads Access Act yet that is exactly what CN is doing; prohibiting access to one or more parcels of land.

A petition has been setup in an attempt to pressure CN into reversing its decision. http://www.change.org/p/glen-childs-stop-cn-from-stranding-residents-in-northern-ontario-north-of-capreol