Tracks from a long-abandoned CN Rail line that cuts through Preston will soon be gone from five street crossings as the city attempts to improve safety for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.
Workers from CN Rail were busy removing the tracks on Dolph and Montrose streets earlier this week before moving on to Lawrence and Concession.
Leah Walter, director of engineering for the city, said the work comes six years after safety audits were completed at 23 at-grade railway crossings across the city.
The audits were necessary after Transport Canada introduced grade crossing regulations through the Railway Safety Act in 2014 with a goal of improving the level of safety at those types of crossings.
In an email to CambridgeToday, Walter said several improvements were identified during the audit and range from signs and markings to infrastructure upgrades.
"As part of the on-going work, staff, in discussion with CN, determined that the rails at five locations could be removed," she wrote.
The work includes two crossings on Concession Road, one of which was prone to complaints from motorists about the uneven or raised tracks.
Funding for the work was earmarked through the capital budget, approved by council last year at an estimated cost of $248,145.
The final bill came in well under that estimate, however, at $135,900, plus tax.
The total doesn't include other potential costs CN could incur and pass onto the city at three crossings where further upgrades to sidewalks and signage are necessary.
The rail lines and property are still owned by CN, which begged the question of what the company plans to do with unused land currently filled with vegetation over the abandoned rail line.
A request to CN Rail for comment went unanswered and it's unclear how far north along the track CN has abandoned its use. The Eagle Street North crossing is being left alone.
The potential to transform the property into a multi-use community trail has been discussed at city hall in the past but at the time that possibility was raised, CN was reluctant to sell the land.
Greg Proctor, project manager in the design and construction division with the Region of Waterloo, confirmed there has been no discussion of that potential at the region.
He said work is ongoing to create a multi-use trail along Coronation Boulevard and King Street between Water and Bishop streets.
If it was ever developed, the former rail trail could form a connection to the planned multi-use trail at Concession Road and eventually close an off-road loop for cyclists if it were to extend to the Mill Run Trail to the north.
Reconstruction of Coronation Boulevard and King Street is proposed to start early 2026 and be completed late in 2027.
