GO train service suspended on Milton line and Hamilton station due to national rail shutdown

Commuters who take GO trains on the Milton line and in Hamilton will have to find alternate ways to get to and from work due to a national rail shutdown.

Rail service at Canadian National Railway and Canadian Pacific Kansas City grounded to a halt at 12:01 a.m. Thursday after a deal wasn’t reached with the union representing about 9,300 workers at both companies.

A phased shutdown of the networks at both companies had already started as contract talks with the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference approached a midnight deadline. 

The shutdown marks the first-ever simultaneous work stoppage at the country’s biggest rail companies.

On Wednesday, Metrolinx preemptively cancelled GO train service on the Milton line and at the Hamilton GO station in anticipation of a work stoppage. Service would be cancelled regardless of whether the strike was averted or not.

“As a result of the ongoing labour disruption, GO train services on the Milton line and at Hamilton GO station are temporarily suspended due to the interruption of rail traffic services provided by Canadian Pacific Kansas City. All other GO lines, the UP Express and Lakeshore West line stations are not impacted,” Metrolinx said in a statement.

“The Canadian National Railway Company labour disruption does not affect any GO or UP Express services.”

The provincial agency responsible for GO Transit said about 7,500 customers use the Milton line daily, which cuts through Mississauga to Toronto’s downtown Union Station.  Around 600 rail customers use Hamilton GO station daily.

Metrolinx spokesperson Andrea Ernesaks said customers on the Milton corridor are encouraged to consider local transit options or access GO Transit on the Lakeshore West or Kitchener corridors. Customers at Hamilton GO can access services at West Harbour or Aldershot GO stations or use regularly scheduled bus service.

Check the GO Transit website for travel alternatives and updates.