The province has rejected a deal from the owners of the rail line in Cape Breton to keep the operation going for another year. Genesee and Wyoming has applied to abandon the line Point Tupper to Sydney because it says the line isn’t viable. As part of the deal, the company was looking for more than double the 2 million dollar annual provincial subsidy for the line. Transportation Minister Geoff MacLellan says that price is too high. Meanwhile, Genesee and Wyoming says new provincial rules preventing it from tearing up rail line in Cape Breton could jeopardize the rest of the line that runs from Point Tupper to Truro. The amendments will allow the rail company to discontinue service on the Cape Breton section of track by the end of the year. However, abandoning the line will now be left up to the province, not the provincial Utility and Review Board. That means the company will have to forego the estimated 20 to 25 million dollars from the salvage of the tracks in Cape Breton.
