Hudson Bay Railway (1997)

Hudson Bay Railway is a Canadian short line railway operating over of track in northeastern Saskatchewan and northern Manitoba.

HBRY was formed by railroad holding company OmniTRAX in July 1997 to purchase former Canadian National Railway (CN) rail lines running north from The Pas on two branches, one to Flin Flon and on to Lynn Lake, the other to Thompson and on to the Port of Churchill on Hudson Bay. Operations began on August 20, 1997.

Subsequently, OmniTRAX also assumed operation and marketing of the Port of Churchill from Transport Canada. Previous owner CN had limited the allowable tonnage to operate on the lines as a result of the light rail and poor track base. However, the HBRY has been able to successfully operate heavier, longer trains without difficulty, resulting in increased business to the Port of Churchill and from various mines and pulp mills.

HBRY is a vital transportation link in northern Manitoba, hauling ores and concentrates, copper, zinc, logs, kraft paper, lumber, and petroleum products. Via Rail also uses HBRY tracks to operate its Winnipeg–Churchill train between The Pas and Churchill.

Major customers for HBRY include Hudbay, Tolko, Vale, Gardwine North, Stittco Energy, Farmers of North America, and formerly, the Canadian Wheat Board.

History

The line was constructed by an earlier company of the same name. The Hudson Bay Railway was built starting in the early 1900s under Canadian Northern Railway before being taken over by the Government of Canada and completed in 1929. The lines were operated by Canadian National Railway from 1929-1997 before being sold to OmniTRAX.

The railway was proposed by Edward Alexander Partridge as part of his Partridge Plan illustrated in the Grain Growers' Guide. This was his solution to being able to ship wheat directly to Europe.

Route

thumb | left | The rail line's initial choice of port, [[Port Nelson, Manitoba|Port Nelson, required a long causeway, to the centre of the silty Nelson River. Service was restored on August 2, 2005, two days ahead of initial expectations.

2006 sale of Keewatin Railway

On April 1, 2006, the Hudson Bay Railway sold the former CN Sherridon Subdivision, between Sheritt Junction and Lynn Lake, to the three First Nations in the area, who now own and operate the railway, running twice-weekly mixed (passenger plus freight) trains.

2017 washout and extended outage

On May 23, 2017, OmniTRAX announced that due to unprecedented flooding, the line was closed indefinitely between Amery and Churchill, pending evaluation of the damages and repairs. Loss of rail service, both passenger and freight, impacted the tourism industry and imposed other costs on Churchill's already fragile economy. Churchill, and other northern communities where cargo had to be delivered by air, faced skyrocketing prices for staples such as groceries and fuel.

Due to a disagreement over what entity was responsible for repair costs, it was uncertain whether the line would ever be repaired. The Canadian government filed an $18 million lawsuit against OmniTRAX for breach of contract. The position of Canada's Natural Resources Minister, Jim Carr, was that "Omnitrax Inc. had legal obligations to repair the rail line and its tracks, citing a contract that required OmniTRAX to "operate, maintain and repair the entire Hudson Bay Railway Line in a diligent and timely manner until March 31, 2029." The position of OmniTRAX was that the extensive flooding constitutes a force majeure that excused it from fulfilling the contract.

Sale to Arctic Gateway Group

In August 2018, the line and port was sold to the Arctic Gateway Group which contracted Cando Rail Services Ltd. and Paradox Access Solutions to begin repairing the line.

On August 31, 2018, the federal government announced that they would be helping to fund the purchase of the railway, and port facilities, back from Omnitrax.

Fairfax and AGT transferred their shares of Arctic Gateway Group to OneNorth (formerly Missinippi Rail) in March 2021, making Arctic Gateway and HBRY completely owned by the local government and Indigenous investors.

In November 2025, the provincial government in Manitoba announced funding to help upgrade the line to bring it up to Class I status.

Accidents

A train carrying liquified petroleum gas derailed on September 16, 2018.

References in popular culture

The American novelist Courtney Ryley Cooper's 1931 adventure novel End of Steel is a fictionalized recounting of the line's original construction.
Calgary performer John Leeder wrote and recorded a song titled "Hudson Bay Line" about the rigors of bygone train travel on this route. According to Leeder, "it's been recorded six times that I know of."