Central Maine & Quebec Railway
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Rail transport |
| Founded | February 14, 2014 |
| Fate | Acquired by Canadian Pacific Railway (June 4, 2020) |
| Headquarters | Bangor , United States |
Area served | Maine, Vermont, Quebec |
| Owner | Railroad Acquisition Holdings, LLC (Fortress Investment Group) |
The Central Maine and Québec Railway was classified as a Class II railroad providing freight transportation across the U.S. states of Maine and Vermont, as well as the Canadian province of Quebec. Its headquarters were located in Bangor, Maine. This railway was owned by Railroad Acquisition Holdings, LLC, a subsidiary under Fortress Investment Group, before becoming part of Canadian Pacific Railway in June 2020.
The U.S. segment of the railway operated under the name Central Maine and Québec Railway US Incorporated, maintaining offices in New York City and having registered with the Surface Transportation Board on February 14, 2014.
Meanwhile, the Canadian division, known as Central Maine and Québec Railway Canada Incorporated, was headquartered in Sherbrooke, Quebec, and registered with Revenue Québec on the same date.
History
Following the collapse of Iron Road Railways in 2002, the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway (MMA) was established. However, after the tragic Lac-Mégantic rail disaster on August 7, 2013—which involved a runaway crude oil train causing 47 fatalities and approximately $200 million in damages in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec—MMA filed for bankruptcy protection in both the United States and Canada. The company entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in the U.S. and sought protection under Canada’s Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act to facilitate asset liquidation.
In December 2013, Fortress Investment Group, through its subsidiary Railroad Acquisition Holdings (RAH), submitted a stalking horse bid for MMA’s operational lines which was accepted in January 2014. RAH subsequently established the Central Maine and Quebec Railway (CMQ) to operate these lines, with completion of the sale anticipated by March 2014. CMQ obtained its certificate of fitness from the Canadian Transportation Agency on June 24, 2014.
During an inspection of the rail infrastructure in March 2014, John E. Giles of RAH estimated that repairs and upgrades costing between $10 million and $20 million over three years would be necessary to bring tracks up to standards suitable for transporting oil or hazardous materials. That same year, CMQ purchased ten GMD SD40-2F locomotives from Canadian Pacific Railway.
Although CMQ intended to restart crude oil rail shipments by January 2016, unfavorable market conditions prevented this plan from materializing.
In 2017, CMQ expanded operations by assuming control of the former Norfolk Southern Hannibal Subdivision located in Ohio. This line served industries owned by Fortress at the Long Ridge Energy Generation Facility. Locomotives SD40-2 #3053 and #3082 were assigned to this route with crews dispatched from Maine. Following Canadian Pacific’s acquisition of CMQ, this operation continued under Fortress management through CMQ’s subsidiary Katahdin Railcar Services.
On November 20, 2019, Canadian Pacific Railway announced its intention to acquire CMQ. CEO Keith Creel highlighted that this purchase would establish a transcontinental Canadian network and enhance CP’s footprint in New England. This transaction also involved reacquiring several lines originally owned by CP but previously sold to CMQ’s predecessors.
The acquisition was officially completed on June 4, 2020.
Rockland Branch Operation
In September 2015, the Maine Department of Transportation selected CMQ to operate the state-owned Rockland Branch rail corridor between Brunswick and Rockland, succeeding the Maine Eastern Railroad as of January 1, 2016. CMQ’s proposal notably excluded passenger excursion services that had been run by Maine Eastern for eleven years along the Maine coastline.
By August 2021, Finger Lakes Railway received approval to assume operations of the Rockland Branch. Shortly thereafter, Dragon Cement—the branch's principal shipper—announced it would discontinue cement shipments from its Rockland facility by year-end. This decision ended the major rail shuttle service that had generated most revenue for this route.
Routes
CMQ managed and operated roughly of rail corridors spanning Maine, Quebec, and Vermont:
- Searsport Subdivision () connecting Northern Maine Junction, ME to Searsport, ME
- Millinocket Subdivision () linking Northern Maine Junction, ME to Millinocket, ME
- East Millinocket Subdivision () running from Millinocket, ME to East Millinocket, ME
- Madawaska Subdivision () extending from Millinocket, ME to the starting point of Maine Northern Railway
- K.I. Subdivision () between Brownville, ME and Brownville Junction, ME
- Moosehead Subdivision () stretching from Brownville Junction, ME to Lac-Mégantic, QC
- Sherbrooke Subdivision () covering Lac-Mégantic, QC to Brookport, QC
- Adirondack Subdivision () connecting Brookport, QC to St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC
- Newport Subdivision () from Brookport, QC to Newport, VT
- Stanbridge Subdivision () linking Farnham, QC to Stanbridge Station, QC
- St-Guillaume Subdivision () running between Farnham, QC and Sainte-Rosalie, QC
- Maine DOT Rockland Branch () spanning Rockland, ME to Brunswick, ME
- Maine DOT Atlantic Branch () located within Rockland, ME
- Hannibal Subdivision
Rail lines by region:
- situated in Maine
- located in Quebec
- operating in Vermont
Interchange points
- Canadian National Railway
- Canadian Pacific Railway
- Eastern Maine Railway
- Maine Northern Railway
- CSX Transportation
- St. Lawrence and Atlantic Railroad /
- Washington County Railroad
See also
- Orford Express, a privately operated tourist train running on a segment of the CM&Q network