Mb Co-Op: Railway costing review risks, benefits
June 1, 2017 —
As the Manitoba Co-Operator reports:
A University of Manitoba agriculture economist warns regulations cutting how much the railways are allowed to earn hauling grain could discourage them from investing to be more efficient.
“I don’t know if you want to mess with the system too much,” Derek Brewin said in an interview May 23.
“They’ve (western farmers) got a competitive rate (compared to northern U.S. farmers) and they’ve got an incentive for the railways (under the current maximum revenue entitlement) to make money and incentives to invest in grain movement.”
Brewin was responding to calls by some farm groups that the federal government determine railways costs for grain hauling before changing the maximum revenue entitlement (MRE) formula.