Critics of Alberta independence often pretend the province would wake up on Day 1 without railways, regulators or anyone capable of keeping freight moving.

That is false.

Alberta already regulates approximately 345 industrial railways, seven heritage railways and three public railways through its existing provincial railway regime. The Railway (Alberta) Act governs railways operating entirely within the province, while Alberta’s rail-safety office handles operating approvals, inspections, audits and incident reporting. 

The Alberta Transition Plan does not propose buying CN and CPKC, replacing their employees or rebuilding thousands of kilometres of track. It proposes expanding Alberta’s existing regulatory capacity to cover the main-line system currently overseen by Ottawa.

Same tracks. Same trains. Same workers. Different constitutional authority.

CN and CPKC are private companies already operating across provincial and international borders. Their locomotives, railcars, yards and commercial contracts would not disappear because Alberta’s constitutional status changed.

There would still be work to do. Alberta would need authority over main-line rail safety, operating fitness, crossings, inspections and enforcement.

Agreements with Canada would also be required for cross-border transit, port access, regulatory recognition and rail interchange.

The Transition Plan proposes temporarily recognizing existing Canadian certificates, rules and technical standards to prevent needless disruption.