Getting the Barrie-Collingwood Rail Line Back in The Black

Adding a Fuel Depot To The Line Would Nearly Double Revenue

City Hall is trying to get the Barrie-Collingwood Railway back on the right track. The rail line has been running at a deficit over the past five years, and in an effort to make it turn a profit, the line’s Utopia Rail Yard needs work. The facility needs to be brought up to code in order to turn it into a fuel terminal, and the city is tentatively committing up to $50,000 to help the process along. Three companies currently rely on the rail line, with about 200 cars using the track a year. If the Utopia Rail Line were to be retrofitted as a fuel depot, the line could manage up to 2,500 cars per year. That would increase the revenue of the line to about $517,000 per year, putting the Barrie Collingwood Rail Line back in black. The line currently brings in $285,500 or so a year, while the average operating cost over the past five years approaches $330,000.