By Railfan & Railroad Staff
Ontario’s York-Durham Heritage Railway announced Sunday it had filed for insolvency just weeks after stating that a dispute with the community it operated out of was going to force it to move. The railroad said that all equipment would be put up for sale.
“The York-Durham Heritage Railway is sad to announce it is ceasing operations immediately and has filed for insolvency protection after almost 30 years of providing train experiences for our guests,” officials wrote on Facebook. “We will miss seeing everyone coming on board for a train ride.”
In December, the railroad announced it was leaving its long-time home in Uxbridge after the local city council did not renew its lease on the town-owned railroad station and yard.
A statement from the YDHR CEO John Graham Perks said in December, “This is not a decision we made lightly, however, the last few months the Township of Uxbridge Council have shown us they believe with a whole heart we have overstayed our welcome and made it very clear their insurmountable pressure will continue until we leave.”
Perks later resigned from his position as CEO.
The township quickly issued its statement which read in part, “The decision to deny a lease extension resulted after multiple attempts to resolve outstanding issues and timelines for compliance were not met.” Among the issues cited were failure to obtain certain local permits and comply with codes, insufficient notice of road closures, and a demand that the railroad remove four long out-of-service coaches. Those coaches were indeed scrapped in late 2023.
The railroad has operated since 1996, on 12 miles of track first laid by the Toronto & Nipissing Railway in the 1800s. Like many tourist railroads, it was hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and then suffered damage in a tornado in May 2022.
The railroad’s primary motive power is an Alco RS-11 built in 1956 as Duluth, Winnipeg & Pacific 3612, retaining that number through subsequent service on Central Vermont and Lamoille Valley railroads as well as YDHR. Two MLW-built RS-3s round out the roster, ex-Ontario Northern 1310 and ex-Roberval & Saguenay 22.
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