The Ottawa Conundrum

I've been thinking over the summer about the nature of this blog. It's called the Beachburg Sub, named after a Canadian National subdivision that once stretched from central Ottawa into the city's distant northwest hinterland, all the way up to Fitzroy Harbour, into the Pontiac Region in Quebec and beyond. The tracks are all gone past Nepean Junction.

You know the story. Canadian National, since taking over the Ottawa Central Railway's operations years ago, has gradually shrunk its footprint in the city to something that is almost negligible. My point is not to get into this history; it's to point out the obvious.

There just isn't much happening locally to blog about if you are a railway fan in Ottawa. I've been a little self conscious about this lately. This year, I've delved into the past a fair bit, mostly writing about the Renfrew Subdivision. But when it comes to blogging about what's happening in Ottawa right now, I can't help but feel that I am becoming a broken record.

This is a photo from the Canadian Museum of Science and Technology archives of the Beachburg Subdivision at Merivale Road, well before Nepean retail and suburban sprawl swallowed up the area. 

I do have a few new spots in the city where I am planning to take photographs. But for the most part, I don't think taking photos of the same Via Rail Venture corridor trains at the same locations makes for captivating reading. I know it doesn't really stimulate me in my writing. 

Then there's the ever-famous CN Arnprior Turn, CN Train 589, which makes its way out to Arnprior once a week on Wednesdays and sometimes Thursdays. To be honest, I am not actively tracking this train or reading local online forums, where railfans are following this train east of the city and out to Arnprior. If I happen to find a time to catch this train or see it, fine. I will document it, if I can. But I am no longer seeking it out. 

Finally, there's the O-Train, a never-ending source of dismay and skepticism in the city, as it continues to underperform and spotlight the city's woeful lack of railway knowledge or appreciation. But, again, my point stands. I've covered this all before and I don't know that it's all that interesting to readers outside of the occasional mention. 

I guess it's a matter of been there, done that. That's why I'm finding photos like this one below more appealing.

Yes, it's a blurry shot taken through the windshield of my car on a rainy summer day. My youngest daughter took this photo for me, because she knows Dad likes trains (bless her!). I guess what appeals to me is that this photo also tells a story of a moment in the life of my city. It's one of the few level crossings in the city (most of them are in Barrhaven) where people actually have to interact with trains. I've been biking up to this crossing on Woodroffe Avenue recently. There is a spot nearby where I think I can get a unique angle and unique piece of the city in a shot. But I will have to wait for some free time where I can get the shot. 

And I guess that explains my approach to Ottawa rail photography these days. I don't really think people come to this blog to read news from Ottawa. They did in the past, but much of the news is now instantly shared on forums that are more active than my three-times-a-month blog. 

This leads me to my question or my invitation to readers for their thoughts. I'd like to know from you what you would like to see in this blog when I focus on Ottawa. I feel as though I've been giving the city short shrift of late, but much of that is out of necessity. I simply have far more photos and content to share from outside the city. Honestly, this blog would not survive if I didn't share content from outside Ottawa. 

I've been thinking of some historic posts or explorations such as:

• the former New York Central line from Cornwall to Ottawa
• former stations in and around Ottawa
• the former northern rail line to Montreal that ran north of the Ottawa River
• CP switching services around the old Eddy and Domtar facilities on the Hull waterfront
• the final days of the Canadian Pacific in the city in the 1990s

These are just a few thoughts off the top of my head. They would require finding photographs and sourcing reliable information. None of these topics would lend themselves to a post in the near term. But I offer them up as an attempt to start a conversation. What do you, the fair reader, want to see about Ottawa?

Okay, how about some honest-to-goodness news?

I took a quick photograph of this former Ottawa Transportation Commission bus, which predated OC Transpo, the successor to the OTC. The bus was parked at Ottawa City Hall recently as part of a day honouring those who serve in uniform, be it police or military. There was a weekend ceremony honouring people who have given their lives in the line of duty. 

Seeing this bus got me to thinking about the bizarre name of Ottawa's transportation service. Where did the name OC Transpo come from? Luckily, I have the answer! I read it in the Ottawa Citizen years ago. 

The story goes that OC stands for Ottawa-Carleton, which is simple enough. Those who have lived here long enough know that Ottawa was once part of Carleton County. As the city and its suburbs grew (think Nepean, Kanata, Gloucester, which were once all their own townships and then cities), the county gave way to what was known as the  Regional Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton.

So, why Transpo? After all, in a bilingual city like Ottawa, the word transport is the same in English and French. According to the Citizen article, Transpo was meant to be an amalgamation of "transportation commission." So, Trans for transport and the o for commission. I'm not sure why the powers that be didn't think to shorten it to Transco, which would make more sense as an abbreviation of these two words, but I suppose Transpo makes more sense if you're trying to emphasize that it's a transportation service. 

Still, all these years later, it's a head-scratcher, but no one in the city seems to mind. 

We've had this discussion before, but I felt it might need to be repeated. We all know that the Beachburg Subdivision west of Federal Junction is lightly used track, to say the least. However, for those pedestrians who might use the rail overpasses on Greenbank Rd, Robertson Rd or even Merivale Rd, beware.The Canadian National has dispatched its police to the city two weeks in a row to patrol the rail overpass on Greenbank Rd.

This overpass seems to be the most popular of all the rail bridges in Ottawa. I see young people using its as a walkway all the time. This is convenient, since the bridge is right next to Sir Robert Borden High School. 

But in case anyone is confused, that rail line remains private property and CN seems to be getting serious about enforcing this rule. Besides the trespassing fine, it's also extremely dangerous to use this right-of-way in the morning or afternoon when CN operates its weekly train to and from Arnprior. If you are caught on this bridge with headphones on, you might find yourself in a very dangerous situation. It's not worth it.  

A reminder of better days

I saw something on June 30 in Sarnia that reminded me of better days. I almost hesitated in writing that in the headline, because I find it frustrating when older railfans (I suppose I'm edging into that demographic) insist that everything was better before. 

For younger railfans, this is their golden age. They will grow up, become adults, and become nostalgic for these days. In other words, I think we need to be mindful of dealing in absolutes. If you asked me whether trains were more interesting to watch when I was younger, I would say yes. But that is just my reality. I respect that people will have different perspectives.

That being stated, I will share that I miss CSX. I miss the days watching the old Chessie System and B&O pained GP38s rumbling through my hometown with long trains bound for Sarnia or Chatham. The old CSX Sarnia Subdivision is a shadow of what it once was, and that is indeed a shame. I won't get into the recent history. I've covered it all before. 

This summer, when I was in Sarnia visiting family, I spent some time in the Sarnia rail yard just to get my fix of main line railroading action. That was when I saw CSX's interchange (transfer, some call it) making its way into CN's yard. This was at the same time that a CN westbound was making its way through the yard.

CSX's operations are down to a very small crew and stable of power. The geeps working the CSX customers in the Chemical Valley are modified, with boxier cabs and other features. Personally, I think they are a step down aesthetically. In this shot above, the power has just curled its way around the LDS roundhouse. As per usual, the crew was pulling tank cars into the yard. CSX handles tank cars and covered hoppers almost exclusively in Sarnia.

This might be one of my favourite shots of the year. As the CSX interchange slowly made its way into the yard, the westbound freight was moving at quite a clip toward the downward grade to the Paul M. Tellier Tunnel. To be honest, I was afraid I wouldn't get any better shots of the CSX train, as this is more of a rarity than the CN freight. Thankfully, the westbound CN cleared the yard quickly, allowing me to capture both trains in motion beneath the gantry. 

Here's a better look at the train making its way west through the yard. What became clear to me as the consist inched forward was that this was an unusually long train. Since the years when I watched CSX trains passing through my hometown when I was younger, I have rarely seen consists this long. 

This shot doesn't really do the length of the train justice, but it was somewhere near 70-80 cars long, which is something I have not seen from CSX in many years. Granted, these are based on very limited observations when I am home visiting once a year. So take that it for what it's worth. You might be able to see another railfan taking in the scene on a bench on the station platform.

One final shot of the westbound transfer coming up to two CN yard jobs around the Indian Road overpass. You can see both of those trains amid the blur of the summer heat and the morning shadows. Three trains in one shot. 

That was one of the highlights of my time in Sarnia on a morning when I saw multiple trains in short succession. It reminded me of a time when CSX was a going concern and handled long freight trains between Chatham and Sarnia on the Sarnia Subdivision. Of course, those days are long gone, but it was nice to be reminded of busier times for a few minutes.

So long, Stratford

All good things must come to an end!

In the last several years, I have been lucky enough to spend long spells at the Stratford rail yard, but no more. My relatives who are living in the city are moving away, which means my family's summer vacations will be shifting west to the London area next year.

So, I will begin this celebration of the Festival City with a nice parting shot. This might be one of my favourite shots from 2026.

I took this shot quickly with my iPhone as I spent some quiet time at the station on vacation in the city this summer. The tracks in the yard have been realigned in the middle, which meant the GEXR units were parked closer to the platform, compared to years past. This allowed me to get a shot of the orange units with an interesting cloud pattern overhead. The Stratford Masterfeeds grain elevator is visible in the background, along with the ever-present covered hopper cars, which are a permanent fixture in this yard.

But if you look closely, you will see that there is a lone CN unit parked deep in the yard. There was no way to properly capture all the engines in one shot that did them all justice from this spot, even with my camera. If you strain your eyes, you will see a speck of dark red level with the bottom of the elevator. That is the lone CN unit, marooned on a yard track, close to the CN work buildings just east of the Via Rail station.

So here is a clear shot of the lone CN geep, on its own. I'm not sure why it would have been left in the yard. CN operates its local moves on the Guelph Subdivision out of the Kitchener yard, which means all work done in Stratford first has to come from Kitchener. When work is done here and further west in St Marys, the crew returns to Kitchener. Possibly this unit had mechanical issues. I'm not sure why it was left here, but it was gone the following day.

I do like that it allowed me some creativity to frame a shot that is a bit more like a landscape shot. You can see the red track signals, a string of Potash branded hoppers and the CN unit next to the imposing grain elevator.

So back to my quest to get both the GEXR and CN units in the same shot that does them some justice. After a few attempts up close to the GEXR units, I backed up on the platform and tried a different approach with my camera. I think this more closely captures the idea in my head of having both railways clearly represented in the same image.

I will share more images from Stratford in coming posts, as I had a few more meets with local CN trains in my days in the city. 

In my time chronicling the Goderich Exeter Railway, both in Goderich and in Stratford, I've been lucky enough to document a lot of change along this short line railway. In Stratford, I have been able to capture both the Goderich Exeter Railway as well as CN numerous times. I've seen this yard when it was the sole domain of GEXR and then watched as the transition back to CN control took hold.

I've seen GO Trains come through the city, not to mention Via Rail corridor trains. There has been no shortage of interesting sights to see from this quiet part of the CN network. 

While I will miss it, I also look forward to possibly chronicling rail activity in a new area. I'm not sure there were many new challenges for me in Stratford. As I have written about a fair bit, I am trying to find new ways to capture railway images in new locations and from new perspectives. My focus has very much shifted to rail landscape shots whenever possible. 

Stratford has much to offer a determined railfan. I'm glad for my time there.