Assigned severity levels and types of contraventions - Rail

A Designated Enforcement Officer who believes that a regulated entity has committed a violation of the Canada Transportation Act or regulations, or when a regulated entity has not complied with a CTA Order, may issue a Notice of Violation setting out the administrative monetary penalty (AMP) that the regulated entity is liable to pay. AMPs are administered based on a progressive scheme of penalties aimed at fostering compliance.

Enforcement officers monitor compliance with the following legislation and regulations:

This table show the level of severity of each type of violation. To search the table below by legislation or regulation, use the corresponding acronym (e.g. CTA, RLIR, PTAPDR)

Legislation/
Regulation		 Provision Violation Severity of Violation Case by case - Penalty Maximum Corporate/Individual penalty
CTA 90 Constructing or operating a railway without being the holder of a certificate of fitness that is issued by the Canadian Transportation Agency under either paragraph 92(1)(a) (for construction or passenger operations) or 92(1)(b) (for other than passenger operations), as the case may be. - Maximum penalty for the first violation 25,000 / 5,000
CTA 93.1(1)(a) If a certificate of fitness was issued for the operation of a railway that relates to a passenger rail service or for the construction of a railway (under paragraph 92(1)(a)), not maintaining adequate liability insurance coverage, as determined in accordance with the regulations, for the operation or construction of the railway for which the certificate was issued. - Up to 100,000 100,000/100,000
CTA 93.1(1)(b), (2) and (3) If the certificate of fitness was issued under paragraph 92(1)(b) for the operation of a railway that does not relate to a passenger rail service, not maintaining the applicable minimum liability insurance coverage for the operation of a railway, as set out in Schedule IV:
1)      including any self-insurance amount that does not exceed the maximum amount of self-insurance that the holder of the certificate of fitness can sustain based on its financial capacity; and
2)      covering the risks as described in paragraphs 92(1.1)(a) to (d).		 - Up to 100,000 100,000/100,000
CTA 94 Not notifying the Agency in writing without delay if the liability insurance coverage of the holder of a certificate of fitness is cancelled or altered or if there are any changes to the construction or operation that may affect the liability insurance coverage. - Up to 100,000 100,000/100,000
CTA 95.3(1) Not complying with an Agency order directing a railway company to undertake changes in its railway construction or operation that the Agency considers reasonable issued as a result of a complaint that a railway company is not complying with its obligation related to noise and vibrations set out in section 95.1 - Maximum penalty for the first violation 25,000 / 5,000
CTA 98 Constructing a railway line without the approval of the Agency unless the construction is within the right of way of an existing railway line or within 100 m of the centre line of an existing railway line for a distance of no more than 3 km. - Maximum penalty for the first violation 25,000 / 5,000
CTA 116(4) Not complying with an Agency order issued as a result of a  determination that a railway company is not fulfilling any of its service obligations. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 117(1) Charging a rate in respect of the movement of traffic or passengers that is not in a tariff in effect issued and published in accordance with Part III Division IV unless the rate is established pursuant to a confidential contract under section 126. C (Serious)
*per car		 - 25,000/5,000
CTA 117(2) Not including in a tariff the information prescribed in the Railway Traffic and Passenger Tariffs Regulations. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 117(3) Not making a tariff accessible to the public by publishing it on its Internet site. A (Administrative) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 117(5) Not keeping a record of a tariff for at least three years after its cancellation. A (Administrative) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 118 Not issuing a tariff in respect of the movement of traffic on its railway, when requested by a shipper. B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 119(1) Not publishing a notice of a proposed increase to a rate in a tariff for the movement of traffic at least 30 days before its effective date. B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 119(2)(c) Not charging the rates in effect (the rates have not expired or the tariff which include these rates has not been superseded by a new tariff) applicable to a railway line owned or operated by a railway company when issuing and publishing a tariff of rates for the movement of traffic in accordance with Part III Division IV or VI. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 120.1(5) Not varying a tariff without delay after the Agency establishes the charges or associated terms and conditions pursuant to an order made under subsection 120.1 (1).  D (Very Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 120.1(6) Varying a tariff with respect to any charges or associated terms and conditions established by order of the Agency under subsection 120.1(1) before the period specified in the order. D (Very Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 122(2) Not publishing without delay, or within any additional time that the Agency may specify under subparagraph 121(2)(b)(ii), a joint tariff or rate agreed between railway companies or determined by the Agency under subsection 121(2). C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 125(1) Preventing traffic from being moved on a continuous route from the point of origin to the point of destination by any combination, contract or agreement, express or implied, or by any other means. D (Very Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 127(2) Not complying with an Agency order directing a railway company to interswitch the traffic or railway companies to provide reasonable facilities for the convenient interswitching of traffic. D (Very Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 127(3) Transferring traffic at an interchange, not in accordance with the Railway Interswitching Regulations or the interswitching rate, when the point of origin or destination of a continuous movement of traffic is within a radius of 30 km of an interchange. C (Serious)
*per car		 - 25,000/5,000
CTA 128.1 Not providing the Agency by August 31 of every year, in the form and manner specified by the Agency, the information or documents that the Agency considers necessary to exercise its powers or perform its duties or functions as set out in section 127.1, in relation to the determination of the rate per car to be charged for interswitching traffic for the following calendar year. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 136.4(1) Local carrier not setting out, without delay after a long-haul interswitching order is made by the Agency pursuant to subsection 134(1), the terms established in the order in a tariff and the shipper and local carrier have not agreed to include those terms in a confidential contract. D (Very Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 136.9(1) Railway company not preparing and keeping up to date a list of the locations of the interchanges on the railway that it operates and publishing it on its Internet site or on the Internet site of an association or other entity representing railway companies. D (Very Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 141(1) Railway company not preparing and keeping up to date a plan indicating for each of its railway lines whether it intends to continue to operate the line or whether, within the next three years, it intends to take steps to discontinue operating the line. A (Administrative) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 141(2) Railway company not making the three-year plan referred to in subsection 141(1) accessible to the public by publishing it on its Internet site or the Internet site of an association or other entity representing railway companies. B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 141(2.1) Not notifying the following of a change to the three-year plan within 10 days after the change:
(a) the Minister;
(b) the Agency;
(c) the minister responsible for transportation matters in the government of each province through which the railway line passes;
(d) the chairperson of every urban transit authority through whose territory the railway line passes; and
(e) the clerk or other senior administrative officer of every municipal or district government through which the railway line passes.		 A (Administrative) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 142(1)  Railway company not complying with the steps described in Part III Division V before discontinuing the operation of a railway line and not publishing and keeping up to date on its Internet site or the Internet site of an association or other entity representing railway companies a report that sets out the date that each step was commenced and completed. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 142(2) Railway company taking steps to discontinue operating a railway line before its intention to discontinue operating the line has been indicated in its three-year plan for at least 12 months. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 143(1) Railway company not advertising the availability of the railway line, or any operating interest that it has in it, for sale, lease or other transfer for continued operation and its intention to discontinue operating the line if it is not transferred. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 143(2) Railway company not including in the advertisement: 1) a description of the railway line; 2) how the line or the operating interest is to be transferred whether by sale, lease or otherwise and; 3) an outline of the steps that must be taken before the operation of the line may be discontinued, including
a)      a statement that the advertisement is directed to persons interested in buying, leasing or otherwise acquiring the railway line, or the railway company's operating interest in it, for the purpose of continuing railway operations; and
b)      the date by which interested persons must make their interest known in writing to the company, which must be at least sixty days after the first publication of the advertisement.		 B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 143(3) Railway company not disclosing in the advertisement the existence of any agreement between the railway company and a public passenger service provider in respect of the operation of a passenger rail service on the railway line; and an indication as to whether or not section 96 applies to the land on which that railway line is located. B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 144(1) Not disclosing the process intended to be followed for receiving and evaluating offers to each interested person who makes their interest known in accordance with the advertisement. B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 145(1) Railway company not offering to transfer all of its interest in the railway line to the governments and urban transit authorities for not more than its net salvage value to be used for any purpose if: 
a) no person makes their interest known to the railway company, or no agreement with an interested person is reached, within the required time or
b) an agreement is reached within the required time, but the transfer is not completed in accordance with the agreement.		 - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 145(1.1) Railway company not disclosing in the offer made to the governments and urban transit authorities whether or not section 96 applies to the land on which that railway line is located, and if the information described in paragraphs 141(2.2)(a) and (b) has not yet been provided to the Minister, not providing that information to the Minister with the offer. B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 146.01(1) Railway company not resuming operations of a line or not following the process set out in sections 143 to 145 within 60 days after the day on which the return takes place if, by reason of the instrument or act by which a railway line or an operating interest in a railway line is transferred through the process set out in sections 143 to 145 or otherwise, a railway line or operating interest in the railway line returns to the railway company that transferred it. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 146.2(1) Not preparing and keeping up to date a list of the sidings and spurs planned to be dismantled and that are located in metropolitan areas or within the territory served by any urban transit authority (except for sidings and spurs located on a railway right-of-way that will continue to be used for railway operations subsequent to their dismantlement). A (Administrative) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 146.2(2) Railway company not publishing the list specified in subsection 146.2(1) on its Internet site and, whenever a change is made to the list, not notifying the following of the change within 10 days after the change:
(a) the Minister;
(b) the Agency;
(c) the minister responsible for transportation matters in the government of the province in which the siding or spur that is the subject of the change is located;
(d) the chairperson of the urban transit authority in whose territory the siding or spur that is the subject of the change is located; and
(e) the clerk or other senior administrative officer of the municipal or district government in which the siding or spur that is the subject of the change is located.		 B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 146.2(3) Taking steps to dismantle a siding or a spur before 12 months have elapsed since the siding or spur was added to the list specified in subsection 146.2(1). - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 146.2(4) Dismantling a siding or a spur that has been on the list specified in subsection 146.2(1) for at least 12 months without having previously sent simultaneously to each of the following an offer to transfer all of its interest in the siding or spur for not more than its net salvage value:
(a) the Minister;
(b) the minister responsible for transportation matters in the government of the province in which the siding or spur is located;
(c) the chairperson of the urban transit authority in whose territory the siding or spur is located; and
(d) the clerk or other senior administrative officer of the municipal or district government in which the siding or spur is located.		 - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 146.2(6) Not notifying the other governments and urban transit authorities of the written acceptance of the offer specified in subsection 146.2(4). B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 149(1) Not issuing and publishing tariffs (prescribed railway companies, i.e. CN or CP) that include single car rates in respect of the movement of grain from each grain delivery point on its railway. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 149(2) Establishing a single car rate (prescribed railway companies, i.e. CN or CP) in a tariff in respect of the movement of grain from a grain delivery point on one of its branch lines that is more than three per cent higher than any single car rate in its tariffs for the movement of the same type of grain under substantially similar conditions for a substantially similar distance from the grain delivery point on one of its main lines that is nearest, as measured in a straight line, to the grain delivery point on the branch line. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 151.1(1) Not preparing and keeping up to date (prescribed railway companies, i.e. CN or CP) a list of the sidings that it makes available in the Western Division (as defined in section 147) where railway cars that are allocated by the Canadian Grain Commission under subsection 87(2) of the Canada Grain Act can be loaded. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 151.1(2) Not publishing (prescribed railway companies, i.e. CN or CP) the list specified in subsection 151.1(1) on its Internet site. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 152.4(1) Public passenger service provider or a railway company not providing  to any person who requests it:
(a) a copy of any agreement entered into on or after June 22nd, 2007 concerning the use of the railway company's railway, land, equipment, facilities or services; or
(b) a copy of any agreement entered into before June 22nd, 2007  concerning the use of the railway company's railway, land, equipment, facilities or services, except agreement or portion thereof excluded by the Agency pursuant to subsection 152.4(2).		 B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 156(5) Railway company for which a classification and system of accounts is prescribed, i.e. CN or CP, not keeping its accounts in accordance with the uniform classification and system of accounts prescribed by the Agency. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 157(5) CN or CP not providing the Agency no later than August 31 of every year, in the form and manner specified by the Agency, all unit costs, output units and other financial, statistical and supporting information for the preceding calendar year that is required for the determination of costs by the Agency under Part III. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 173(1) Knowingly making a false or misleading statement or knowingly providing false or misleading information to the Agency or to any person acting on behalf of the Agency in connection with any matter under the Canada Transportation Act. - Up to 25,000 25,000/5,000
CTA 173(2) Knowingly obstructing or hindering or making a false or misleading statement, either orally or in writing, to a person designated as an enforcement officer who is engaged in carrying out functions under the Canada Transportation Act. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
CTA 178(5) Not providing reasonable assistance at the request of an enforcement officer and/or not furnishing information at the request of an enforcement officer. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
RLIR 5(2) Not providing the Agency with:
a) the information set out in Schedule 1 (Information for a Certificate of Fitness for the Operation of Passenger Rail Service or the Construction of a Railway); and
b) a description of any changes to the information that was most recently provided under this section before the expiry of any insurance coverage, as soon as feasible after the certificate of fitness holder has arranged for new insurance coverage to replace it, and in any case at least once a year.		 B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
RLIR 6(2) Not providing the Agency with:
a) the information set out in Schedule 2 (Information for a Certificate of Fitness for the Operation of a Railway That Does Not Relate to a Passenger Rail Service); and
b) a description of any changes to the information that was most recently provided under this section before the expiry of any insurance coverage, as soon as feasible after the certificate of fitness holder has arranged for new insurance coverage to replace it, and in any case at least once a year.		 B (Minor) - 25,000/5,000
RIR 4 Terminal carrier not furnishing at all times to interswitched traffic a level of service equal to its own line haul traffic. C (Serious) - 25,000/5,000
RIR 5 Railway company not delivering an empty car to the terminal carrier that interswitches a car at the interchange for delivery to a siding for loading. C (Serious)
*per car		 - 25,000/5,000
RIR 6 Terminal carrier charging for the delivery of an empty car from an interchange to a siding for loading or for the return of an empty car to an interchange after unloading. C (Serious)
*per car		 - 25,000/5,000
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