Introduction

Trains

Rail Lines

Ports

Rail Lines

To speed up the movement of coal, the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) had to make many improvements to its track. From Fort Steele to Golden, the CPR had to lift up its old track and lay new rails and ties that could handle the heavy loads of coal. The Railway also added new sidings* to this section every 12 kilometres.⁵

Inside of Greenhills coal silo. Courtesy of Fording Coal Ltd.

The busy rail lines from Golden to Vancouver also needed to be improved. From Revelstoke to Kamloops, the CPR added sections of double track to allow trains to pass each other without stopping.⁶ Through the Fraser Canyon, some trains could switch over to the Canadian National Railway mainline, which wasn't as busy as the CPR line.

The CPR also needed to build new spurs** to the growing mines and sea ports. The Railway added over 70 kilometres of track from Sparwood to the mines up the Elk Valley.⁷ They built 64 kilometres of track from a point near Mission to the new coal port at Roberts Bank.⁸

Next Page