TORONTO — Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon announced that CN Rail has been issued a Notice and Order that restricts certain CN train speeds in Ontario.

A Notice and Order is issued under Section 31 of the Railway Safety Act, when in the opinion of a Transport Canada railway safety inspector, there is an immediate threat to safe railway operations.

The order applies to continuous welded rail territory (non-jointed rail), where construction or significant maintenance of line work is being undertaken. Under these conditions, freight train speeds are restricted to 10 mph and passenger train speeds to 30 mph unless such work has been inspected by a qualified CN track supervisor and approved by the chief engineer for the area, the ministry states.

In response to the July 14, 2006 CN derailment in Oakville, Ont. Transport Canada’s rail safety branch followed up with CN officials and reviewed its track maintenance records. This review revealed instances of non-compliance with the Track Safety Rules (TSR) and identified deficiencies with the company’s inspection processes.

“We are ordering CN to comply with the Notice and Order until it can demonstrate to Transport Canada that they have addressed and resolved the threat to safe railway operations to the satisfaction of the department,” Cannon said in a prepared statement.