End of the Line?

I just received an email from the Honourable David Alward, Premier of New Brunswick, about the termination of the New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders' lease:

Dear Mr. Boyko:

RE: Cancellation of Crown Lands Lease

This is in response to your e-mails addressed to myself and the Minister of Natural Resources dated December 8, 2010 regarding the cancellation of the lease to the New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders.

As the lessee was advised by letter, this lease is being cancelled in order to enable the establishment of a multi-use recreational trail. This particular section connects to SentierNBTrail and developing this corridor as a multi-use trail will provide a greater variety of uses to a broader public, rather than limiting it to a few people.

I appreciate your interest in this matter.

Sincerely,

Honourable David Alward
Premier


Here's the letter I wrote.

Dear Mr. Alward,

I am writing to protest the decision to terminate the lease for the New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders of the 9.5 miles of track in the Nackawic-Millville area. This group has used and maintained the railway track for over ten years and deserves to continue to use this land. They have been responsible users of the land, paid their lease dues, and improved the property with no assistance from government.

I would like to know the reasons for terminating their lease. My contact information is listed below.

Please reconsider this termination. Thank you.

Steve Boyko

CBC Article on NBRRR

I see there is a CBC article on the cancellation of the New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders' lease on the track near Nackawic. I wrote about this on Wednesday.

Danny Dineen is interviewed in the story and blames the cancellation on partisan politics and a local businessman wanting the contract to remove the rails.

More to come...

New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders in Jeopardy

I received word this morning that the province has told the New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders (NBRRR) that their lease on the 9 miles of railroad track between Nackawic and Millville will be cancelled effective December 29, 2010.

For those who don't know, the NBRRR are a group of people who operate track speeders over the former CP Southampton Subdivision between Nackawic and Millville in New Brunswick. Read about the New Brunswick Recreational Rail Riders. They have maintained the track since their inception and have never asked for any government handouts. They enjoy their hobby and would like to continue to do so. Without this track they will have nowhere in New Brunswick to run their speeders.

The Minister of Natural Resources, the Honourable Bruce Northrup, wrote that the reason for canceling the lease was to allow multi-purpose use of the trail. Presumably the rails will be lifted and the roadbed converted to trail, as so much of the province's rail system has become.

It should be pointed out that the New Brunswick Trail passes by Nackawic on the south side of the Saint John River, and this "multi-purpose trail" would not connect to any existing trail.

There are rumours that a local contractor has been waiting for a government contract to lift the rails. I don't know if this is true or not.

This is the last significant piece of publicly owned track in New Brunswick. The land it is on is not valuable and the new trail that would be created would not connect to any existing trail.

Please speak out. You can contact the Minister, Bruce Northrup, at bruce.northrup@gnb.ca. The Premier, David Alward, can be contacted at david.alward@gnb.ca.

Please help keep this piece of New Brunswick railway history alive.