Quiet train tracks in Regina’s northwest back in use

After sitting mainly vacant for years, a set of train tracks in Regina’s northwest is springing back to life.

Lately, various Mobil Grain cars have been spotted on the rail line, which runs across Rochdale Boulevard and up to Davidson. It’s called the Last Mountain Railway and was purchased by Mobil in 2015.

The owner of Mobil Grain is Murad Al-Katib, who also serves as the CEO of AGT Foods and Ingredients and was recently named EY World Entrepreneur of the Year.

He confirmed the company bought the independent rail line two years ago. In 2016, a new terminal was built in Condie and began increasing production. In 2017, activity on the rail line ramped up even more and Al-Katib expects more traffic yet in 2018 and 2019.

“We have to get our goods to market. The demand in Asia is driving it, 10 billion people by 2050,” he said. “There’s an opportunity for us to feed the world from Regina plains and to add value and to create jobs.”

Al-Katib considers this a big economic opportunity for the Queen City and the entire area. He also noted that use of the rail line has other potential spinoffs.

“Anytime you can take trucks off the road and put it into rail, it actually benefits the infrastructure, it benefits traffic flows and it’s safer actually,” he added.

This will essentially compliment what Al-Katib believes will be more CN Rail activity around Regina as a result of a new industrial business park recently approved in the city’s southeast.