Ontario Northland Railway main line
Rail line
Ontario Northland Railway main line
Overview
OwnerOntario Northland Railway
Service
Services
History
Opened16 January 1905 (1905-01-16)
Technical
Line length438 mi (705 km)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Route map

Legend
mi
186.2
 Moosonee
0.32
Kapuskasing Subdivision
0.0
28.05
 Cochrane
National Transcontinental Railway
0.72
Iroquis Falls Subdivision
0.0
85.7
Porcupine Branch
66.4
 Matheson
26.0
 Swastika
25.6
Kirkland Lake Subdivision
0.0
138.5
 Englehart
112.8
 New Liskeard
102.8
 Cobalt
71.8
 Temagami
1.6
 North Bay
Alderdale Subdivision
North Bay rail bypass
0.0
North Bay Yard
North Bay Subdivision
Newmarket Subdivision
[1]
This diagram:

The Ontario Northland Railway main line is a railway line in the province of Ontario, in Canada. It runs 438 miles (705 km) from North Bay, Ontario, to Moosonee, on the southern end of James Bay. The line was built in stages by the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway, a crown corporation, between 1902 and 1932. The company was renamed the Ontario Northland Railway in 1946, and continues to own and operate the line. The Polar Bear Express provides passenger service between Cochrane, Ontario, and Moosonee. The Ontario Northland plans to resume passenger service south of Cochrane in 2026.

History

The Ontario provincial government created the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway on 17 March 1902. The new company was to build a railway line between North Bay, Ontario, and New Liskeard, Ontario, on Lake Temiskaming. Groundbreaking took place on 10 May at Trout Lake, near North Bay.[2] Given the risk of trackside fires from steam locomotives, the government considered electrification for the new line, but rejected it because of inadequate hydroelectric power sources along the proposed route.[3]

As construction continued, the planned northern terminus of the line moved from New Liskeard to Cochrane, Ontario, to connect with the National Transcontinental Railway, then in the early stages of development.[4] The line opened between North Bay and New Liskeard on 16 January 1905.[5] The extension from New Liskeard to Englehart, Ontario, opened on 1 October 1906.[6] The line opened between Englehart and Cochrane on 30 November 1908.[7][8]

A further extension to James Bay was approved in 1921, with construction beginning in February 1922.[9] The extension opened between Cochrane and "Island Falls Junction", approximately 44.5 miles (71.6 km) north of Cochrane, on 1 November 1923.[10] Howard Ferguson, who became Premier of Ontario in 1923, opposed the full extension to James Bay, and construction stalled at Fraserdale, 70 miles (110 km) north of Cochrane.[11] The government reversed course in 1927 and construction resumed, reaching Coral Rapids (100 miles (160 km)) on 18 October 1928.[12] The line was completed to Moosonee on 15 July 1932.[13]

The Ontario Northland had no station of its own in North Bay prior to 1990, instead using the stations of the Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Railway. With the withdrawal of Via Rail services to North Bay, the Ontario Northland Railway opened its own station on 29 August 1990. This eliminated a backup move to the Canadian National Railway's station on the Alderdale Subdivision.[14] The Canadian National abandoned its line through North Bay on 24 November 1995.[15] In 2025, the Ontario Northland built a new bypass track north of its North Bay yard, connecting with the Newmarket Subdivision. This was expected to save fifteen minutes on the schedule of a restored Northlander service.[16]

Route

As of 2023[update], the Ontario Northland Railway divides its main line into four subdivisions. The Temagami Subdivision runs from North Bay to Englehart. The Ramore Subdivision runs from Englehart to Porquis, and also includes the branch line to Porcupine, Ontario. The Devonshire Subdivision runs from Porquis to Cochrane. Finally, the Island Falls Subdivision runs from Cochrane to Moosonee.[1]

Notes

  1. ^ a b Roberts, Earl; Stremes, David, eds. (2023). Canadian Trackside Guide. Ottawa, Ontario: Bytown Railroad Society. p. 14-131. ISSN 0829-3023.
  2. ^ Surtees (1992), pp. 9–10.
  3. ^ Surtees (1992), pp. 13–14.
  4. ^ Surtees (1992), pp. 21, 56.
  5. ^ Surtees (1992), p. 26.
  6. ^ Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Commission (1907). Fifth Annual Report of the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Commission. Toronto. p. 41.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ^ Surtees (1992), p. 58.
  8. ^ Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Commission (1910). Eighth Annual Report of the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Commission. Toronto. p. 16.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  9. ^ Surtees (1992), pp. 157–160.
  10. ^ Surtees (1992), p. 167.
  11. ^ Surtees (1992), pp. 168–169.
  12. ^ Surtees (1992), pp. 170–171.
  13. ^ Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Commission (1933). Thirty-first Annual Report of the Temiskaming and Northern Ontario Railway Commission. Toronto. p. 6.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  14. ^ Vollhardt, Frank Jr. (December 1990). "New on the Northland". Trains. Vol. 51, no. 2. pp. 10–12.
  15. ^ Farand, Raymond S. (March–April 2011). "In Service to a Nation's 'Dream'" (PDF). Canadian Rail. p. 62. ISSN 0008-4875.
  16. ^ "Ontario Newsroom". news.ontario.ca. Retrieved 2025-10-11.

References

  • Surtees, Robert J. (1992). The Northern Connection: Ontario Northland since 1902. Captus Press. ISBN 978-0-921801-83-2.

Further reading

  • Greenwood, F. Murray; Smith, E. N. (January 1960). "Diesels to Desolation". Trains. Vol. 20, no. 3. pp. 28–37.
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