Nelson Daily News, March 21, 1929

Trains Will Be Running in Two Years Time

Will Link Cranbrook and Nelson Subdivisions-It is expected that actual construction will commence on the railway line around Kootenay Lake from Procter to Kootenay Landing, a distance of 35 miles, this summer, was the announcement made by C.A.Cotterell, General superintendent for the C.P.R.'s B.C. district. This will complete the last link of the all-rail route of the C.P. from Coast to the prairies, and in less than two years trains will be operated through, said Mr, Cotterell. To many of the citizens of Nelson, the line will be something of a mixed blessing, as for years it has been a pleasant sight to watch the boat come into Nelson in the evening and the water trip across the lake has always generated a comfortable and enjoyable means of travel, but with the expansion of the country and the development of traffic, this means of transportation of course, cannot be continued indefinitely; at the best it is rather slow.

The construction of the railway will mean a great deal to Nelson, said Mr. Cotterell. Of course there will be the usual activity that goes along with any large undertaking of this kind, where hundreds of men are employed. But the real benefits will come when the line is opened for traffic. As trains will run from Cranbrook to Nelson, there will naturally be considerable expansion in railroad activities, and any increase in the railroad payroll is reflected in the business of the city and one can hardly visualize what the through service will mean to the entire east and West Kootenay.

The passenger train arriving at Kootenay Landing at 3:35 p.m. as at present will arrive at Nelson about 5:15, beating the present boat service by over three hours, and the eastbound service will go straight through instead of remaining over all night for the boat connection as at present, and all railway traffic will be speeded up in comparison. With a through southern line, it is quite reasonable to assume that the railway company will not hesitate to make use of this route in order to relieve the main line. In fact, it will give the C.P. two direct lines from the coast to the prairies, which will materially strengthen their position.

Editors Notes
by Shawn Lamb

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