A short line in British Columbia that depends on wood products is suffering due to the ongoing trade war between the United States and Canada. Now, it’s leading to the cancellation of popular holiday excursions 

The Nelson & Fort Sheppard Railway runs on former Great Northern trackage between Frutvale and Columbia Gardens, B.C., where it interchanges with the St. Paul & Pacific Northwest, ultimately linking to BNSF Railway. The short line’s main source of traffic is lumber being exported to the U.S. But that traffic has been affected by a trade war started by President Donald Trump earlier this year.

“​​Our railroad thrives on the export of wood products from Canada to the U.S., and the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and Canada is placing wood products on the front lines.    As volumes of wood product exports to the U.S. decline and our overall freight volumes decrease, we are taking necessary cost savings measures to ensure our railroad can weather these challenging times,” the railroad announced in November. “While we’ve had generous support from local businesses for many years to help offset the cost of insurance for our Community Train Rides, the additional costs we incur to operate each ride are beyond our budget this year.”

The railroad stated that it plans to resume the annual December excursions in the future, once traffic returns. 

—Justin Franz