Great Western Railway (Saskatchewan)

Canadian shortline railway

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Great Western Railway

Great Western head office

Overview
Headquarters| Shaunavon, Saskatchewan
Reporting mark| GWRS
Locale| Southwestern Saskatchewan, Canada
Dates of operation| 1999 (1999)-Present
Predecessor| Canadian Pacific Railway
Technical
Track gauge| 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Length| 440 miles (710 km)
Other
Website| www.greatwesternrail.com

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Great Western Railway
(Saskatchewan)

Legend

|  |  |

|  | Great Western Railway

|
|
|
|

|  |

|  | Red Coat Road and Rail
|  |

|  | Fife Lake Railway
|  |

|  | CPKC trackage
|  |

|  | other lines
|  |  |  |  |  |

* * *

| former line

to Weyburn

|  |

Poplar River Power Station

Pangman  |  |

|  |

Poplar River Coal Mine

Ogema  |  |

|  | Coronach
Glasnevin  |  |

|  | Fife Lake
Horizon  |  |

|  | Constance
Viceroy  |  |

|  | Rockglen
Verwood  |  |

|  |  | Southern Rails Cooperative

Colony subdivision
Readlyn  |  |

|  | Lisieux
Willows  |  |

|  | Scout Lake
|  |

|  | Assiniboia
|  |

|  |

former Wood Mountain Sub

Limerick  |  |

|  |
Melaval  |  |

|  |
LaFleche  |  |

|  |
Woodrow  |  |

|  |
Meyronne  |  |

|  |
|  |

|  |
Glenbain  |  |

|  | Kincaid
Esme  |  |

|  | Hazenmore
Vanguard  |  |

|  | Aneroid
Pambrun  |  |

|  | Ponteix
Neville  |  |

|  | Cadillac
Blumenhof  |  |

|  | Admiral
|  |

|  | Instow
Shaunavon  |  |

|  |

former line to Val Marie

Dollard  |  |

|  | Bracken
Eastend  |  |

|  | Climax
Robsart  |  |

|  | Frontier
Consul  |  |

|  | Claydon
|  |

|  |

Notukeu Junction

|  |

|  |  | former line to

Stirling, Alberta
|  |  |  |  |  |

The Great Western Railway (reporting mark GWRS) is a Canadian short line railway company operating on former Canadian Pacific Railway trackage in Southwest Saskatchewan.[1] Great Western Railway Ltd. is an operating company that services the line and is locally owned and operated by farmers and municipalities in Southwestern Saskatchewan.

## History

[edit]

Abbotsford based Westcan Ltd., a railway contracting and maintenance company from BC, purchased 330 miles of track from CP and announced the launch of a new Westcan-owned short line, Great Western Railway Ltd, to provide service on these lines. The original purchase date was July 31, 2000, but this date was pushed to September 8, 2000 after overwhelming rainfall washed out 16 km of track on the Vanguard Subdivision, one of the branches that was being sold. An agreement was reached with Canadian Pacific to repair the damaged section at a cost of more than 500,000 before the takeover was completed.

In 2004 the railway was purchased by local investors from the area of Saskatchewan it serves. It is now locally owned and operated. Great Western Railway continues to serve many producer loading sites along their entire rail network, but also provide railcar storage for Class I railways and railcar companies.

GWR operates on 308 miles (496 km) of former Canadian Pacific Railway's Shaunavon, Vanguard, Altawan and Notukeu Subdivisions. GWR also services 60 miles (97 km) on the Fife Lake Railway, which is wholly owned by the company, and another 72 miles (116 km) of the Red Coat Road & Rail on a yearly contractual basis.[2]

A trio of GWRS M420s idling outside of the Shaunavon shops.

## Engine Roster

[edit]

Great Western Railway had humble beginnings hauling hopper cars of grain for small producer loading sites, but as Great Western Railway gradually gained trackage rights over Red Coat Road & Rail and Fife Lake Railway, the railway required more motive power to provide sufficient customer service for their new customers. Up until 2011, Great Western Railway utilized an all MLW M420 roster; however, with the increased maintenance cost of operating Montreal Locomotive Works locomotives, Great Western Railway decided to purchase their first General Electric units. In March 2011 it was announced Great Western Railway would receive two former Burlington Northern Santa Fe GE B40-8Ws for the original Great Western route.[3] In early 2017, GWRS 576 was purchased, continuing the company's effort to move into an entire G.E. fleet. Great Western Rail is currently in the process of selling their entire MLW fleet.

Unit  | Model  | Built  | Acquired  | History  | Retired  | Status  | Image

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

563  | B40-8W  | 1992[4] | 2011 [3] | ATSF 563 (1992-2003)

BNSF 563 (2003-2011) GWRS 563 (2011–Present)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |
575  | B40-8W  | 1992[4] | 2011 [3] | ATSF 575 (1992-2003)

BNSF 575 (2003-2011) GWRS 575 (2011–Present)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |
576  | B40-8  | 1989  | 2017[4] | NYSW 4048 (1989-1990)

CSXT 5937 (1990-2015) (temporarily de-rated to B20-8) WRIX 5937 (2015-2017) GWRS 576 (2017–Present)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |
577  | B40-8  | 1988  | 2021 [4] | CR 5088 (1988-Late 90s)

NS 4816 (Late 90s-2006) CSXT 5978 (2006-After 2018) GECX 5978 (Before 2020 -2021) GWRS 577 (2021–Present)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |
578  | B40-8  | 1988  | 2021 [4] | CR 5067 (1988- Late 90s)

NS 4803 (Late 90s - 2006) CSXT 5965 (2006 - After 2018) (Temporarily re-rated to B20-8) GECX 5965 (Before 2020 - 2021)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |
2000  | M420  | 1973  | 2000 [6] | CN 2522 (1973-1987)

CN 3522 (1987-2000) CCCR 2000 (2000-2001) GWRS 2000 (2001-2020) KRC 2404 (2020–Present) [4][7]

| 2017-2019  | Sold  |
2001  | M420  | 1973  | 2001 [6] | CN 2514 (1973-1987)

CN 3514 (1987-2000) CCCR 2001 (2000-2001) GWRS 2001 (2001-2020) KRC 2405 (2020–Present)[4][7]

| 2017-2019  | Sold  |
2002  | M420R  | 1974  | 2002 [6] | P&W 2002 (1974- Early 90s)

MECR 2002 (Early 90s - Late 90s) NREX 2002 (Late 90s -2003) GWRS (2003-2019) SLSX owned since 2019[4][7]

| 2017-2019  | Sold  |
2003  | M420  | 1977  | 2008 [6][8] | CN 2571 (1977- Late 80s)

CN 3571 (Late 80s - Unknown) CANX 3571 KPR 3571 LSRC 3571 (Early 2000s -2007) GWRS 2003 (2007-2019) SLSX owned since 2019[4][7]

| 2017-2019  | Sold  |
2004  | M420  | 1976  | 2008 [6][8] | CN 2563 (1976- Late 80s)

CN 3563 (Late 80s -Unknown) CANX 3563 KPR 3563 LSRC 3563 (Early 2000s -2007) GWRS 2004 (2007-2019) SLSX owned since 2019[4][7]

| 2017-2019  | Sold
4062  | B23-7  | 1979  | 2013  | CR 1974 (1979-1999)

NS 4062 (1999-2005) AOK 4062 (2005-2013) GWRS 4062 (2013–Present)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |
4064  | B23-7  | 1979  | 2013  | CR 1976 (1979-1999)

NS 4064 (1999-2005) AOK 4064 (2005-2013) GWRS 4064 (2013–Present)[4][5]

| N/A  | Active  |

## See also

[edit]

* Railways portal

* List of Canadian railways
* Rail transport in Canada

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY". Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan University of Regina. Retrieved 2012-06-18.
2. ^ "Great Western Railway Official Website". Great Western Railway Ltd. 2015. Retrieved 2015-11-05.
3. ^ a b c "Canadian Railway Observations March 2011" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-05-11.
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Canadian Trackside Guide (2023 ed.). Ottawa, Ontario: Bytown Rail Society. 2023. pp. 1–92 "Saskatchewan Shortline Rosters - Great Western Railway". ISSN 0829-3023.
5. ^ a b c d e f g "GWRS - Great Western Railway Company Locomotive Roster - Railroad Picture Archives.NET". rrpicturearchives.net. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
6. ^ a b c d e "GWRS roster". Canadian Trackside Guide (2011 ed.). Bytown Railway Society. 2011.
7. ^ a b c d e "Great Western Railway Saskatchewan". www.trainweb.org. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
8. ^ a b "Great Western Railway Equipment". Retrieved 2011-05-11.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great Western Railway (Saskatchewan).

* Great Western Railway Official Website
* Saskatchewan Rail Network 2015

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Railways of Canada

Common freight
carriers|

* Barrie Collingwood Railway
* BNSF Railway
* Boundary Trail Railway
* Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway
* Central Manitoba Railway
* Chemin de fer Lanaudière
* Canadian National Railway
* Canadian Pacific Kansas City
* CSX Transportation (Pan Am Railways)
* Carlton Trail Railway
* Essex Terminal Railway
* Fife Lake Railway
* Goderich–Exeter Railway
* Grand Forks Railway
* Great Sandhills Railway
* Great Western Railway (Saskatchewan)
* Hudson Bay Railway
* Huron Central Railway
* Island Rail Corridor
* Keewatin Railway
* Kettle Falls International Railway
* Last Mountain Railway
* Maine Northern Railway
* Minnesota, Dakota and Western Railway
* New Brunswick Southern Railway
* Nelson and Fort Sheppard Railway
* Norfolk Southern Railway
* Orangeville Brampton Railway
* Ontario Northland Railway
* Ontario Southland Railway
* Ottawa Valley Railway
* Quebec Gatineau Railway
* Red Coat Road and Rail
* Sartigan Railway
* Southern Ontario Railway
* Roberval and Saguenay Railway
* Sydney Coal Railway
* St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad
* Southern Rails Cooperative
* Southern Railway of British Columbia
* Stewart Southern Railway
* Torch River Rail
* Thunder Rail
* Trillium Railway

Private carriers|

* Cartier Railway
* Arnaud Railway
* Bloom Lake Railway
* Chemin de fer de la Rivière Romaine
* Port of Montreal railway
* Greater Winnipeg Water District Railway
* Quebec North Shore and Labrador Railway
* Tshiuetin Rail Transportation
* Vale Railway
* Wabush Lake Railway
* Western Labrador Rail Services

Class II and
III railways|

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Class II and class III railways of Canada

Current (operating)
regional railways|

* CSXT
* EXO
* GOT
* HBRY
* HCRY
* KLR
* KRC
* NS
* ONT
* QNSX
* RMV
* TSH
* WCE
* WPY

Former or fallen flag
regional railways|

* AC
* BCOL
* CDAC
* C&K
* C&PR
* CAR
* CAR (original)
* CASO
* CCR
* CER
* CGR
* CMQ
* CNoR
* CV
* CW&LER
* DAR
* E&NAR
* GTPR
* GTR
* H&SW
* HBR
* ICR/IRC
* K&P
* MEC
* MC
* MR
* MMA
* NR
* NTR
* NYC
* NS&T
* NAR
* N&PJ
* NRC
* NSR
* OA&PS
* O&QRR
* PC
* PEIR
* PSCR
* SLQ
* T&NR
* TT
* VR

Current (operating)
short line railways|

* ANR
* APR
* APXX
* ARND
* ARM
* BRR
* BCRY
* BFDC
* BGS
* BLRC
* CBNS
* CCGX
* CEMR
* CFC
* CFL
* CFS
* CFO
* CFQG
* CRM
* CTRW
* CWRL
* ECRM
* ENR
* ETR
* FLR
* FSSR/EKRC
* GEXR
* GHRP
* GJR
* GFR
* GJD
* GSR
* GWWD
* GWR
* HPA
* HCRR
* HCRY
* HCWR
* HPHV
* IRRS
* KFR
* KHR
* KLTR
* KPR
* KVSR
* LMR
* LWR
* MNRY
* MDW
* NBSR
* OKAN
* OBRY
* OSR
* OVR
* OVO
* PAR
* PCHR
* PDCR
* PLC
* POM
* PSTR
* QGRY
* RCRR
* RES
* RLHH
* RLK
* RMRS
* RS
* S&HR
* SCR
* SFG
* SLQ
* SOP
* SOR
* SRCL
* SRY
* SSR
* SSS
* STCR
* STER
* SVI
* THR
* TRR
* TRRY
* VAEX
* VDHR
* WABL
* WLRS
* WCR
* WCRA
* WHRC
* WLRC
* YDHR

Former or fallen flag
short line railways|

* ANY
* B&HER
* BCER
* BQ
* BW&NW
* BR
* CBC
* CFMG
* C&K
* C&SL
* CVR
* CVR
* CW&LER
* DH
* DVR
* DWP
* EIR
* G&LS
* GFCR
* GRNR
* GVR
* H&BIR
* H&DR
* H&NWR
* HER
* HG&BER
* HGR
* HIR
* HRE
* HSR
* H&SW
* IRM
* K&P
* K&S
* KLR
* KVR
* L&LER
* L&MSR
* L&PS
* LEN
* LB&PR
* MVRR
* M&MR/M&M
* MKNR
* MSRT
* NBEC
* N&NR
* N&NWR
* N&S
* NN&RW
* NGR
* NSR
* NSR
* NYR
* O&Q
* OCRR
* OLO
* O&RRR/ORRR
* PAD&WR/PADW
* QC
* QSR
* S&L
* SAR
* SCFQ
* SOO
* STLH
* SW&AR
* TI
* T&MER
* T&SER
* TG&B
* TCR
* THB
* TNR
* TRC
* TS&MJR
* TSt.R
* TSR
* T&YRR
* WJR
* WI
* WAR
* WCR
* WE&LSR
* WESR
* WG&B
* WTV&IR

See also: List of Canadian railways

Passenger railways|

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Passenger railways of Canada

Intercity|

* Via Rail
* Amtrak
* Cascades
* Maple Leaf
* Adirondack
* Keewatin Railway
* Ontario Northland Railway
* Tshiuetin Rail Transportation

Sightseeing|

* Agawa Canyon Tour Train
* Alberta Prairie Railway Excursions
* Port Stanley Terminal Rail
* Rocky Mountaineer
* Royal Canadian Pacific
* White Pass and Yukon Route

Commuter rail|

* GO Transit
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Urban rail|

* CTrain
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| Under construction|

* Broadway extension
* Vancouver
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* Calgary
* Hurontario LRT
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* Line 5 Eglinton
* Toronto
* Line 6 Finch West
* Toronto
* Ontario Line
* Toronto
* O-Train Stage 2
* Ottawa
* REM Stage 2
* Montreal
* Surrey–Langley extension
* Greater Vancouver
* Valley Line West
* Edmonton

|

Planned|

* Blue line extension
* Montreal
* Gatineau LRT
* Gatineau
* Ion Stage 2
* Waterloo Region – Cambridge
* Hamilton LRT
* Hamilton
* Pink Line
* Montreal
* Quebec City Tramway
* Quebec City

Cancelled or closed|

* Expo Express
* Montreal
* Scarborough RT
* Toronto
* Sheppard East LRT
* Toronto
* Surrey LRT
* REM de l'Est
* Montreal

Streetcar|

* Toronto streetcar system

Railbus|

* Tsal'alh Seton Train

People mover|

* Terminal Link
* Toronto

Heritage tramways|

* High Level Bridge Streetcar
* Edmonton
* Nelson Electric Tramway
* Whitehorse Waterfront Trolley

See also|

* Urban rail transit in Canada
* Streetcars in North America
* Heritage railways in Canada
* Canada railways template
* Canada short line railways template

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