Central Maine & Quebec Railway to begin operating in Canada after CTA approval

The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) yesterday granted a certificate of fitness to the Central Maine & Quebec Railway (CMQR) after determining it had adequate liability insurance. The certificate will enable the railroad to begin operating in Quebec, Canada.

The railroad expects to close a transaction on Monday to assume operations of the former Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway (Canada) Inc., then immediately take over operations of the Quebec lines after the closing, said CMQR Chief Executive Officer John Giles in an email.

The sale of Montreal, Maine & Atlantic's Canadian operations to a Fortress Investment Group subsidiary — CMQR's owner — was pending upon CTA's approval of the fitness certificate. In May, the Fortress subsidiary acquired Montreal, Maine & Atlantic's U.S. operations and CMQR began operating lines in portions of Maine and Vermont.