Southern Railway of BC & E&N Ry

Beginning July 1st, Southern Railway of BC (SRY) will assume operations of the Esquimalt & Nanaimo Railway on Vancouver Island. SRY is a subsidiary of the Washington Group of companies, the new unit will be known as Southern Railway Vancouver Island. The E&N is owned by the Island Corridor Foundation, a nonprofit group of First Nations Bands and Municipalities along the line. Earlier this year, Canadian Pacific Railway and RailAmerica each donated their portions of the rail line to the non profit society in return for a tax receipt. While there is a huge amount of work ahead to turn the E&N into a profitable and modern rail line the torch (as it were) has been turned over to a very capable operator and the Islands' railfans are stoked about the future.

Finally, the future seems to be "on track" after many years of depair, hope, and numerous rumours and speculations. Let's hope the Island Corridor Foundation and Washington Group can bring new life to the long neglected E&N.

It seems SRY has a logo for the E&N separate of its lower mainland operations. They have also changed their homepage to reflect the island operations. http://www.sryraillink.com/ I think it bodes well for their commitment to Vancouver Island.