British Columbia Railway

The British Columbia Railway (AAR reporting mark BCR) is the largest railway company in British Columbia, operating over a total of 5095 miles of railway; of this, 4495 miles is on the mainland, 433 miles on Vancouver Island, along with 167 miles in Yukon, Canada. The BCR is a Crown corporation, owned by the government of British Columbia; responsible for it is the Ministry of Labour, Industry, and Railways. The BCR provides extensive passenger and freight service throughout its network.

Background (to 1918)
The earliest history of the British Columbia Railway can be traced back to two competing efforts to create a second (and third) transcontinental route entirely within the British Empire to be an alternative to the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR).

The first of these was the Dominion Northern Railway, founded in Canada in 1898, beginning construction in eastern Canada, but it wasn't until 1900 that, to satisfy the requirements of BC law, the DNR established a BC-based subsidiary called the Dominion Northern Railway of British Columbia. Construction of the BC portion of the transcontinental line, from Vancouver to Edmonton, Alberta, commenced in the same year. Actual new construction was required only from Liverpool, Surrey, as the DNR secured running rights over the route of the Vancouver, Westminster & Yukon Railway (VW&Y) from Vancouver to Brunette, New Westminster, and access over the government-owned New Westminster Bridge opened in 1904 from Brunette to Liverpool. The DNR began construction of its Pacific Central Station in Vancouver in 1909, finishing in time for the grand opening of the new line from Vancouver to Edmonton in 1914. Shortly before scheduled operations began on the new line, the Dominion Northern acquired the VW&Y and absorbed it.

Meanwhile, the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway was established in British Columbia in 1911, with half of the shares being held by the Grand Trunk Railway (GTR) of Canada, as part of its plan to build a new transcontinental line. The distinctive feature of this plan was its intention to establish a major port at Prince Rupert, which would provide a shourter route for ships to and from Asia. Work on the new line from Edmonton, Alberta to Prince Rupert went quickly, and by the end of 1914 the new line was operational. The GTR, however, had decided to pull out of the transcontinental project in 1912, and the Canadian government, still desirous of another railway from Atlantic to Pacific, established a new, government-owned company called the National Transcontinental Railway (NTR) in 1913. Construction of the NTR was fraught with difficulties, both physical and financial, and the line expanded only slowly; two years later, the NTR, along with several other companies previously nationalised in Canada to create the Canadian Government Railways (CGR). The GTR did, however, retain its share of ownership of the Grand Trunk Pacific.

The GTP line through the Rocky Mountains from Edmonton into British Columbia via Jasper, Alberta closely parallelled the Dominion Northern line - in some places being only a handful of yards apart. The two railways quickly came to an agreement to allow the one to use the other's line should the need arise, and in 1916 the Dominion Northern opened an 8.8 mile connecting line from Valemount Junction to Tete Jaune Cache on the Grand Trunk Pacific's line.

Unfortunately for both railways, the outbreak of the First World War caused a downturn in traffic, which, as neither was comfortably secure in their finances, affected both companies significantly. Being in direct competition with the Canadian Pacific for Vancouver traffic, hindered by a longer route from Winnipeg to the Pacific Coast, and - not having its own shipping subsidiary - having to rely on third-party steamship operators, the Dominion Northern was hit particularly hard, leading to its bankruptcy less than three years after its opening. Recognising the importance of the railway, in 1918 the Canadian government nationalised the Dominion Northern, with the BC government opted to follow suit a month later. In Canada, the nationalised company retained the Dominion Northern name, but the Dominion Northern Railway of British Columbia was renamed, becoming the British Columbia Railway (BCR).

Beginnings (1918 – mid 1920s)
Crown ownership of the railway gave the BCR a stability and security that it had lacked before. The Dominion Northern, operating on a shoestring budget from the beginning, had saved money wherever it could, with the result that the quality of construction on the mainline left much to be desired. One of the first tasks after nationalisation was the upgrade of the mainline to the highest standards of the time over the entire line from Hope to Jasper.

Meanwhile, after being taken over by the Canadian Government Railways, the National Transcontinental project was finally completed from Quebec City, Quebec to Edmonton in 1922, opening a third ocean-to-ocean railway entirely inside British North America. The hope in BC was that this would bring both the GTP and the BCR - to which the CGR connected at Jasper - more traffic, and thus more income. The following year all of the railways owned by the Canadian government - the Canadian Government Railways, the Dominion Northern, the Grand Trunk Railway (which had been nationalised after a bankruptcy a few years prior), and several smaller railways - into a single entity known as the Canadian National Railway.

The Grand Trunk Pacific remained in private hands for several years after the end of the First World War. Although it provided a very important service to northern BC, the levels of traffic were far lower than had been anticipated. This was due in large part to the failure of the National Transcontinental project to generate the amount of traffic that had been envisioned, for several reasons.

One of the biggest reasons was that the Canadian Prairies were still too undeveloped and too sparsely populated and, to make things worse, the routes taken by the National Transcontinental and the Dominion Northern were essentially parallel between Edmonton and Winnipeg. Furthermore, the NTR route through northern Ontario travelled through rather barren territory that was generally unproductive (it wasn't until many years later that its mineral wealth began to be exploited). Thus, with little traffic generated on this section, its value was primarily as a bridge route for traffic between the Atlantic ports and central Canada - which naturally made no difference to British Columbia.

Another factor was that much of the traffic heading from Canada to the Pacific coast was routed to Vancouver. Traffic from the Canadian Pacific for export from Prince Rupert was virtually nil, as the CPR naturally preferred to move freight along its own mainline in BC to the port of Vancouver to connect with its own shipping subsidiary, Imperial Pacific Steamships; similarly, most export traffic from the Dominion Northern was also routed to Vancouver for transshipment. This left only freight originating on the CGR's National Transcontinental route - which, as mentioned, proved to be much less than expected - along with DNR shipments bound for Japan and Vladivostok, Russia, being directed over the GTP, as the shorter sea route from Prince Rupert to these destinations cut several days off the transit time. This already lower-than-hoped-for amount of traffic dropped further after the Russian Revolution of 1917 led to a suspension of BC and Canadian trade with the Lenin's Bolshevik regime.

This drop in revenue hit hard, forcing the GTP to take a loan from the BC government in 1919. Two years later, the company directors were in Victoria once again. The government of Prime Minister Sir John Oliver wasn't keen on giving the struggling firm another loan so soon, however. Oliver did, however, understand the importance of the rail line, and what the failure of the GTP would mean to the development of BC's North. With the government already having four years' experience in running a railway, the decision was easy: the second loan request was refused. With the railway itself already the collateral for the first loan, there was little to protest for the GTP's directors when the nationalisation was announced; indeed, shareholders were given payouts that, argued Conservative Leader of the Opposition William Bowser, were far higher than what the railway was worth. Bowser subsequently attempted - unsuccessfully - to use the GTP nationalisation in his campaign to unseat Oliver in the parliamentary elections of 1924.

The nationalisation of the Grand Trunk Pacific took place on 1 January 1922, with its operations, equipment, and personnel being merged into the British Columbia Railway; the line from Jasper to Edmonton was sold to the Canadian government, and was subsequently incorporated into the Canadian National Railway when that was established in 1923. Overnight, the length of the BCR's routes more than doubled; at that time, the Vancouver–Jasper line was given the name Inter-Dominion Line, the Prince Rupert–Jasper line was named Grand Trunk Line, and the connection between the two from Tete Jaune Cache to Valemount Junction was named Valemount Connecting Line. However, after that, for several decades the BCR made only modest expansions, instead concentrating on operating its existing network. The first trunk line to be built entirely by the BCR from survey to last spike, was the 71 mile Slahaltkan Line from Kamloops on the former Dominion Northern mainline to Armstrong, which opened for traffic in 1925. At Armstrong, it connected the to the Kettle Valley Railway's line to Kelowna, and to the Canadian Pacific branch line to Sicamous on the CPR mainline. Also in 1925, a connection to the North Shore of False Creek was made with a rail and road bridge over the Second Narrows, and the 7.4 mile North Shore Line from BCR's Terminal Avenue Yard in Vancouver to North Vancouver to serve port facilities and shipbuilders on the North Shore; in 1930, a 3.9 mile branch was added to the North Shore Line, running from Brooksbank, located adjacent to the northern end of the Second Narrows Bridge, east to Dollarton was opened to serve the Hoffar Aero Engines plant opened there in that year. This trackage on the North Shore spawned further industrial development over the following years, including grain, sulphur, coal, and chemical terminals. The only other railway to be built by the BCR before the Second World War was the 34.9-mile Dog Creek Line from Vanderhoof on the northern mainline to Fort St James.

Electrification (1920s – 1950s)
Other than the construction of the BCR's Vanderhoof–Fort St James line and the Pacific Great Eastern's Clinton–Ashcroft line (the PGE was also nationalised in 1918, but remained a separate entity), the 1920s and 1930s saw only minimal investment from the Dominion government in the expansion of its railway network; the bulk of the money allotted to railway construction went towards the electrification of the Vancouver–Jasper mainline. The Ministry of Railways first became interested in the idea of electrification in the 1910s, but invention of a system using standard industrial-frequency alternating current supplied by a single overhead wire from the public electricity network to power locomotives equipped with a revolutionary rotary phase converter caught the attention of BCR's engineers in a serious way, and after extended negotiations, the inventor of this system, the brilliant Kálmán Kandó, arrived in BC in 1922 to oversee the project to electrify the southern mainline in its entirety. Kandó also designed the locomotives to be used on the electrified line; these would be built by the Vancouver Locomotive Works in Liverpool, Surrey, adjacent to the BCR's main yard and shop facilities at Liverpool Station. High priority was placed on this project, with a 10 mile test section between Liverpool and Walnut Grove being energised in late 1923 with 15kV 60Hz, and testing of the first prototype locomotive beginning in the spring of 1924.

Further testing and development work continued over the next few years, with the locomotive designs - one for freight, the other for passenger trains - being finalised in 1928, and testing of the prototypes carried out through 19298. The tests successful, electrification of the mainline and production of a batch of five of each of the two locomotive types - one for freight, the other for passenger trains - was begun at the end of that year. The first section to be electrified was the difficult section through the Fraser Canyon, 117 miles from Hope to Ashcroft, energised in September 1930. The ten locomotives were put into a six-month period of in-service testing on scheduled trains. During this period, electrification work continued on the sections from Vancouver to Hope (91.7 miles) and from Ashcroft to Kamloops (48.8 miles); towards the end of this period, full production of the locomotives began. Scheduled electric operation between Vancouver and Kamloops began in July 1931, and by the beginning of 1937, steam power on mainline trains on that segment had been eliminated completely. The next section completed was the other difficult mountain segment: from Valemount to Jasper was energised in October 1931. This included both the 75.3 mile line originally built by the Dominion Northern, as well as the parallel 64.8 mile Grand Trunk Pacific line from Tete Jaune Cache to Jasper, and the 8.8 miles between Tete Jaune Cache and Valemount Junction built by the Dominion Northern in 1916 to connect the two cross-border lines.

Electrification of the remainder of the southern route, between Kamloops and Valemount, was completed in three stages between 1932 and 1936, with the final section of 114 miles from Vavenby to Valemount being energised in August 1936. Parallel to that, work began on the electrification of the northern mainline as well. The work began at Tete Jaune Cache, with the first 42.6 miles from Tete Jaune Cache to McBride being completed in March 1934. The 146 miles from there to Prince George were covered more slowly, being completed only in June 1937. The 115.4 miles from Prince George to Endako was energised in August 1939, but the outbreak of the Second World War a month later forced the suspension of work on the remaining 350 miles to Prince Rupert.

The Second World War, post-war expansion, and the railway as a tool of national policy (1939 to date)
The Second World War forced a halt to work on major projects, like electrification and the construction of new lines, and during the war years only essential maintenance work was carried out on the infrastructure. Indeed, between 1939 and 1945 only one new rail lines were built in BC: the Washington & British Columbia Railway's line from Sooyoos in the southern Okanagan to Oroville, Washington, in 1943; construction of this line was authorised in order to speed the movement of materials between the United States and new industrial complexes built in the Okanagan, where they would be a safe distance from possible Japanese attack. The production of new locomotives and rolling stock, however, was stepped up to meet the increased demands of wartime industrial production, including the introduction of new type of electric locomotive for heavy freight trains between Vancouver and Kamloops. Also as an emergency measure to aid wartime production, in 1942 the BCR's Kamloops–Armstrong line (71.3 miles), and 37.9 miles of the Kettle Valley Railway's Armstrong–Kelowna line from Armstrong to the large new Supermarine complex just north of Kelowna via Middleton were electrified, together with the branch from Middleton to Lumby, where Hoffar Aero Engines opened a vast complex in the same year. As the KVR at that time did not operate any electric locomotives, BCR power was used on the newly electrified sections.

In southern British Columbia, since the first decade of the 20th century the American-owned Great Northern Railway had, through BC-based proxies and subsidiaries, been making deep inroads into the Okanagan, the Boundary Country, and the Kootenays, leading to fears of increasing American influence in the region, and to calls for the BC government or the CPR to increase their presence in the area; the latter had already held controlling interest in several small railways in the region. Recognising the danger of BC's resources being funnelled to the US to serve American profit and interests, the BC government proposed a joint venture between itself and the CPR in order to face the threat posed by the Great Northern. To this end, in 1914 the BCR and the CPR established a joint venture called the Kettle Valley Railway (KVR). The new company bought up numerous small railways in the region and merged these together, and over subsequent years the CPR sold its railways in the area to the KVR. It also undertook to build several new lines, eventually reaching a total route length of just under 850 miles. The BC government bought out the CPR's share completely in 1955, and the KVR was absorbed into the BCR; its network was subdivided and routes were given official names, in keeping with BCR practice.

The 1955 absorption of the KVR into the BCR marked the beginning of a lengthy period of expansion of the railway, aided by the post-war economic boom, and the decision by Prime Minister W.A.C. Bennett's government to use its railways as a means of implementing its long-term plans to develop the Interior and the North of the Dominion. The first step towards this was to merge the to government-owned railways, the BCR and the Pacific Great Eastern Railway, which had been nationalised in 1918 but which kept its own separate identity, into a single Crown corporation, retaining the British Columbia Railway name; this merger went into effect on 1 January 1956. Like the KVR network, the PGE network was also divided into formally-named lines. Later in the same year, a 39.5 mile line was opened from the PGE's southern terminus at Squamish to the BCR yard in North Vancouver. This eliminated the need for the Squamish–Vancouver rail ferry, which significantly decreased the travel time between the two points, and significantly increased the amount of traffic that could be handled. Then, between 1957 and 1959, 23 miles of railway - the Lulu Island Line were built in Greater Vancouver, to serve new industries and port facilities along the Fraser River. In 1960, the Vancouver Island Railway was nationalised and absorbed into the BCR. Then, in 1978, the BCR purchased and absorbed the Esquimalt & Nanaimo Railway, which had been a subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific, leaving the BCR the only major railway company serving central and southern Vancouver Island.

But the biggest development of the 1950s was the 1958 opening of the electrified 257.5-mile Peace River Line from Prince George to Dawson Creek. A key part of the government's plans for development of the North was the New Towns Project. Inspired by the British undertaking of the same name, this project envisioned the transformation of a number of towns and settlements in northern BC into planned "model cities". This, together with policies of directed immigration and incentives to encourage people from the Lower Mainland to relocate to the New Towns, led to them becoming the important economic and cultural centres of the North that they are today. The first of the "New Towns" was Dawson Creek, and its inauguration as such coincided with the official opening of the Peace River Line. Prior to 1958, the only rail connection Dawson Creek had to the rest of BC was a circuitous route via the Northern Alberta Railway's line to Edmonton, and thence to Jasper over the Canadian National; the opening of the Peace River Line gave Dawson Creek a direct connection to the rest of BC and to the coast.

This was quickly followed by two more new lines: the Williston Lake Line, an electrified 23.7 mile route from Kennedy on the Peace River Line to Mackenzie (which was designated a New Town in 1963) was opened in 1960, and the 275.3 mile Chilcotin–Owikeno Line from Williams Lake on the former PGE mainline to Bella Coola on the central coast. The latter line has never made a profit since it was opened - though it was never envisioned as a profit-maker; rather, it was opened to provide a socially necessary service, and a way to help modernise that part of the country. However, in subsequent years, funding for New Town developments went almost exclusively to areas north of Prince George, but since the turn of the millenium the Dominion government has begun investing in the development of Bella Coola. Then, over the fifteen-year period between 1967 and 1982, the BCR opened over 1350 miles of new railway including primary and secondary trunk lines such as the Fort Nelson Line (Chetwynd–Fort Nelson, 328 miles), the Stikine Line (Fort St James–Dease Lake, 414 miles), the Cassiar Central Line (Dease Lake–Teslin, Yukon, 292 miles), and the Klondike Line (Teslin–Whitehorse, Yukon, 140 miles). The opening of the Klondike Line finally realised the 80-year-old dream of the founders of the Vancouver, Westminster & Yukon Railway - the British Columbia Railway's oldest ancestor.

Since the completion of the line north to the Yukon in 1982, the only new line built by the BCR was the 69.1 mile Imperial Line, running from St Joseph Mission on the Cariboo Line to Likely. This line was opened in 1995 primarily to move copper and gold from Imperial Metals' Mount Polley mine at Likely, but since its opening has played an important role in the development of the communities along the line. Although no new lines have been built since then, other programmes, such as electrification of some lines and the modernisation of bridges, signalisation and control systems, and other infrastructure, have been undertaken. As well, a continuing programme to modernise the motive power and rolling stock of the BCR was initiated in 1998.

Network
The BCR is divided into x operating areas called Regions; responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the lines and infrastructure within a given operating area is the responsibility of the Region in question.

In the listing below Secondary Lines (i.e. branchlines) are listed below the Trunk Lines (i.e. mainlines) to which they are officially attached. Only terminal stations and stations connecting to other lines are indicated.

1. Island Region (HQ Victoria)

 * Line 10 Esquimalt & Nanaimo Line: Victoria Union–Tyup–Westholme–Colvilletown–Nanaimo, 72.7 miles, electrified (Nanaimo–Collishaw ( miles) double-tracked)
 * Line 101 Lenora Mount Sicker Line: Lenora–Westholme–Crofton, 11.6 miles
 * Line 102 Duke Point Branch: Colvilletown–Cedar–Duke Point, 6.5 miles
 * Line 1021 Harmac Spur: Cedar–Harmac, 2.5 miles
 * Line 11 Central Coast Line: Nanaimo–Parksville–Royston–Courtenay–Campbell River (RBCNR), 102.0 miles (Nanaimo–Parksville ( miles) electrified, double-tracked)
 * Line 111 Alberni Line: Parksville–Alberni–Port Alberni, 38.8 miles
 * Line 1111 Great Central Line: Alberni–Kleecoot–Great Central (Kleecoot–Great Central closed 1983)
 * Line 1112 Clayoquot Line: Kleecoot–Surf Junction–Tofino
 * ''Line 11121 Ucluelet Branch: Surf Junction–Ucluelet, closed 1963
 * Line 112 Wellington Colliery Line: Union Bay–Royston–Cumberland, 20.0 miles (including Union Bay–Royston section closed 1981)
 * Line 113 RBCAF Comox Spur: Courtenay–DFJB Comox, 4.5 miles
 * Line 12 Peninsula Line: Victoria Union–Sidney, 18.8 miles
 * Patricia Bay Branch: Bazan–Patricia Bay, closed 1941
 * Line 13 South Coast Line: Victoria Union–Bazan–Saseenos–Sooke, 25.7 miles
 * Line 1301 Army Spur: Rocky Point–BCDF Rocky Point, 2.3 miles
 * Line 131 Central Island South Line: Saseenos–Deerholme–Lake Cowichan, 48.3 miles
 * Line 1311 Cowichan Bay Branch: Deerholme–Tyup–Cowichan Bay, 6.9 miles
 * Line 132 Central Island North Line: Lake Cowichan–Port Alberni, 72.5 miles

2. Lower Mainland Region (HQ Vancouver)
376.3 miles, 223.5 miles electrified, 42.9 miles freight only, 47.0 miles double-tracked
 * Line 20 Inter-Dominion Line (part): Vancouver Pacific Central–Grandview Jct (W&BC)–Brentwood Jct–Brunette (CP, W&BC)–Sapperton (BCH)–Liverpool (BCH)–Eagles Reach (BCH)–Gifford (NWP)–Matsqui (NWP)–Chilliwack (BCH, NWP)–Hope–Spences Bridge–South Nepa (CP)–Ashcroft, 208.6 miles, electrified, 43.7 miles double-tracked
 * Line 201 South False Creek Line: Grandview Jct–Vancouver Terminal Ave.–South False Creek, 3.4 miles, electrified, freight only
 * Line 202 North Shore Line: Brentwood Jct–Brooksbank–North Vancouver, 7.4 miles, electrified, freight only (Brooksbank-North Vancouver (3.3 miles) double-tracked)
 * Line 2021 Dollarton Branch: Brooksbank–Dollarton, 3.9 miles, electrified, freight only
 * Line 203 Lulu Island Line: Sapperton (Fraser River Bridge)–New Westminster (BCH, CP)–Queensborough Jct–Shell Road–South Triangle–Fraser Wharves, 17.4 miles, freight only
 * Line 2031 Finn Slough Spur: South Triangle–Finn Slough, 0.9 miles, freight only
 * Line 2032 South East Branch: Queensborough Jct–British American–Fraser Wharves, 5.4 miles, freight only (British American–Fraser Wharves (1.5 miles) closed 1981)
 * Line 2033 North West Branch: Shell Road–Dinsmore–Thompson, 3.6 miles, freight only
 * Line 20331 Sea Island Spur: Dinsmore–Sea Island, 1.5 miles, closed 1991
 * Line 21 Coquihalla Line: Odlum (CP)–Kawkawa (Hope; W&BC)–Brodie–Middlesboro–Merritt, 77.8 miles
 * Line 211 Nicola Sawmills Spur: Middlesboro–Nicola Sawmills, 0.9 miles, freight only
 * Line 22 Nicola Valley Line: Spences Bridge–Merritt–Nicola, 47.0 miles

3. Fraser Region (HQ Kamloops)
210.7 miles, 209.0 miles electrified, 1.7 miles freight only, 96.4 miles double tracked
 * Line 30 Inter-Dominion Line (part): Ashcroft–Barnes Creek (CP)–Brocklehurst–Kamloops (CP)–Vavenby, 135.2 miles, electrified, 25.1 miles double-tracked
 * Line 3001 Airport Branch: Brocklehurst–Kamloops Airport, 2.5 miles, electrified
 * Line 3002 Supertest Spur: Brocklehurst–Brocklehurst-Supertest, 1.7 miles, freight only
 * Line 31 Slahaltkan Line: Kamloops–Labyrinth (CP)–Armstrong (CP), 71.3 miles, electrified, double-tracked

4. Kettle Valley Region (HQ Penticton)
364.4 miles, 62.6 miles electrified, 62.6 miles double-tracked
 * Line 40 Okanagan Line: Armstrong (CP)–Middleton–Lebanon Lake–Penticton–Sooyoos (W&BC), 132.7 miles (Armstrong–Kelowna (47.6 miles) electrified and double-tracked)
 * Line 401 Lumby Line: Middleton–Lumby, 15.0 miles, electrified, double-tracked
 * Line 41 Syilx Line: Penticton–Princeton (W&BC), 70.5 miles
 * Line 411 Tullameen Line: Princeton–Brodie, 42.0 miles
 * Line 42 Kettle Valley Line: Lebanon Lake–Rock Creek (W&BC)–West Midway (W&BC)–Midway, 104.2 miles

5. Kootenay Region (HQ Castlegar)
416.8 miles, 21.8 miles freight only
 * Line 50 Boundary Line: Midway–Granby–Westend–Grand Forks (W&BC)–Cuprum–Castlegar (NWP)–Rossland (W&BC), 129.7 miles
 * Line 501 Granby Smelter Spur: Granby–Granby Smelter (W&BC), 2.2 miles, freight only
 * Line 502 City Station Spur: Westend–Grand Forks City, 1.7 miles
 * Line 503 Carson Spur: Cuprum–Coopers Wye (W&BC), 2.0 miles
 * Line 504 North Fork Line: Cuprum–Grand Forks City–Westend–Archibald, 19.6 miles, freight only
 * Line 51 Slluqan Valley Line: Castlegar (NWP)–South Slocan–Taghum–Nelson (CP, W&BC), 25.8 miles
 * Line 511 Balfour Branch: Taghum–Balfour (rail ferry to Kaslo), 25.5 miles, closed 1978
 * Line 52 Slocan Lake Line: South Slocan–Slocan City (rail ferry to Silverton, 31.3 miles
 * Line 53 Arrow Lakes Line: Nakusp–Rosebery–Silverton (rail ferry to Slocan City), 34.5 miles
 * Line 531 Zincton Branch: Rosebery–Zincton, 11.8 miles, freight only, closed 1981

6. Pacific Great Eastern Region (HQ Squamish)
870.8 miles, 25.7 miles freight only
 * Line 60 Sea-to-Sky Line: North Vancouver–Squamish–Pemberton, 93.7 miles
 * Line 6011 Ferry Yard Branch: Squamish–Squamish Ferry Yard, 3.0 miles, freight only
 * Line 6012 Squamish Terminals Branch: Squamish–Squamish Terminals, 2.1 miles, freight only
 * Line 61 Cariboo Line: Pemberton–Clinton–St Joseph Mission–Williams Lake, 218.0 miles
 * Line 611 Sitlika Line: Clinton–Ashcroft, 34.3 miles
 * Line 612 Imperial Line: St Joseph Mission–Likely, 69.1 miles
 * Line 62 Chilcotin–Owikeno Line: Williams Lake–Bella Coola, 275.3 miles (RBCNR ferry from Bella Coola to Port Hardy)
 * Line 63 North Fraser Line: Williams Lake–Macalister–Prince George, 154.7 miles
 * Line 631 Gibraltar Branch: Macalister–Gibraltar, 20.6 miles, freight only

7. Grand Trunk Region (HQ Prince George)
708.0 miles, 708.0 miles electrified
 * Line 70 Grand Trunk Line (part): Prince Rupert–Navy Jct (RBCNR)–Ganiks Laxha (SPR)–Skeena Crossing–Vanderhoof–Prince George–Foreman–Shelley–Tete Jaune Cache, 656.4 miles, electrified (RBCN Railway ferry from HMBCS Rainbow to Port Hardy via Navy Jct)
 * Line 701 Red Rose Line: Skeena Crossing–Red Rose, 9.7 miles, electrified
 * Line 702 Dog Creek Line: Vanderhoof–Fort St James, 34.9 miles, electrified
 * Line 703 Shady Valley Connecting Line: Foreman–West Shelley–Northwood, 5.6 miles, electrified
 * Line 7031 Shelley Branch: West Shelley–Shelley, 1.4 miles, electrified

8. Northern Region (HQ Dawson Creek)
1651.8 miles, 568.5 miles electrified, 42.6 miles freight only, 42.9 miles dual gauge
 * Line 80 Peace River Line: Prince George–Northwood–Summit Lake Jct–Wakely–Kennedy–Chetwynd–Sundance Lakes–Dawson Creek (CN), 257.5 miles, electrified, 97.2 miles double-tracked (River Bend–Summit Lake (34.0 miles), Chetwynd–Dawson Creek (63.2 miles)
 * Line 8001 Mechpulp Branch: Sundance Lakes–Mechpulp, 2.6 miles, freight only, electrified
 * Line 801 Omineca Line: Summit Lake Jct–Tl'azt'en–Fort St James, 77.7 miles, electrified
 * Line 802 Tumbler Ridge Line: Wakely–Tumbler Jct–Tumbler Ridge, 75.7 miles, electrified
 * 'Line 8021 Quintette Branch: Tumbler Jct–Quintette 2, 9.6 miles, freight only, electrified
 * Line 803 Williston Lake Line: Kennedy–Mackenzie, 23.7 miles, electrified
 * Line 804 Fort Nelson Line: Chetwynd–Big Lake–Leyton–Taylor–Fort Nelson–RBCAF Fort Nelson, 328.2 miles (Chetwynd–Fort St John (69.5 miles) electrified; Fort Nelson–RBCAF Fort Nelson (3.3 miles) freight only)
 * Line 8041 Saturn Branch: Big Lake–Saturn, 21.2 miles, freight only, electrified
 * Line 8042 Site C Branch: Leyton–Site C, 4.1 miles, freight only, electrified
 * Line 8043 Supertest Spur: Taylor–Supertest Taylor, 1.8 miles, freight only, electrified
 * Line 8044 Domforco Spur: Taylor–Domforco Taylor, 2.6 miles, freight only, electrified
 * Line 81 Stikine Line: Fort St James–Meadowview–Takla Landing (BCAR)–Iskut Jct (SPR)–Dease Lake, 413.7 miles (Iskut Jct–Dease Lake (22.5 miles) electrified)
 * Line 811 Omineca-Stikine Connecting Line Meadowview–Tl'azt'en, 1.5 miles
 * Line 82 Cassiar Central Line: Dease Lake–Teslin, YT, 292.2 miles
 * Line 83 Klondike Line: Teslin, YT–Carcross, YT (WP&Y)–Whitehorse, YT (ARR, WP&Y), 139.9 miles (Carcross–Whitehorse (42.9 miles) dual gauge)

9. Yellowhead Region (HQ Yellowhead)
249.3 miles, 249.3 miles electrified, 8.5 miles double-tracked
 * Line 90 Grand Trunk Line (part)''': Tete Jaune Cache–Yellowhead–Jasper, AB, 54.8 miles, electrified
 * Line 901 Valemount Connecting Line''': Tete Jaune Cache–Valemount Jct, 8.8 miles, electrified
 * Line 91 Inter-Dominion Line (part)''': Vavenby–Valemount Jct–Yellowhead–Jasper, AB, 185.7 miles, electrified, 8.5 miles double-tracked

Passenger services
The BCR operates a wide range of passenger trains, international and domestic, of various categories ranging from "Limited Express" trains making very few intermediate stops to mixed trains composed of passenger cars attached to freight trains.

Limited Express
Limited Express trains are the BCR's fastest and most prestigious trains, making very few or no intermediate stops. All have distinctive names, some of which - such as the "Inter-Dominion Limited", the "Continental", and the "International Hiawatha" - have passed into BC's cultural consciousness.

International
With the exception of the "Klondike Limited", all international Limited Express trains are operated as joint services with other railway companies. All international Limited Express trains feature full-service dining cars open to first and second class passengers, sleeping cars (first class) and sleeperette cars (second class), as well as baggage handling, free of charge for first class passengers, or for a surcharge for second class passengers. International services may be used for domestic travel, but for travel between three or fewer domestic stops a surcharge is applied. There are no customs checks between British Columbia and Canada.


 * Skeena Limited (BCR/VIA Rail): Prince Rupert, BC – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
 * Daily service with a morning departure from each end using one VIA consist and one BCR consist, with VIA locomotives and crews working the VIA consists and BCR locomotives and crews working the BCR consists over the entire route. This train runs over the trackage of the BCR between Prince Rupert and Jasper, and of the Canadian National between Jasper and Edmonton. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Ganiks Laxha, Hagwilget, Lake Kathlyn, Smithers, Endako, Vanderhoof, Prince George, McBride
 * Alberta: Jasper


 * Inter-Dominion Limited (BCR/VIA Rail): Vancouver, BC (Pacific Central) – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
 * Daily service with a morning departure from each end using one VIA consist and one BCR consist, with VIA locomotives and crews working the VIA consists and BCR locomotives and crews working the BCR consists over the entire route. This train runs over the trackage of the BCR between Prince Rupert and Jasper, and of the Canadian National between Jasper and Edmonton. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Chilliwack, Hope, Ashcroft, Kamloops, Clearwater, Valemount
 * Alberta: Jasper


 * Okanagan Limited (BCR/Amtrak): Kamloops, BC – Spokane, Washington, USA
 * Daily service with a morning departure from each end using one Amtrak consist and one BCR consist. This train runs over the trackage of three railways: the BCR between Kamloops and Sooyoos, the Washington & British Columbia between Sooyoos and Oroville, Washington, and the Burlington Northern & Gulf between Oroville and Spokane. A BCR locomotive works the train on the electrified line between Kamloops and Kelowna, a W&BC locomotive and crew is used between Kelowna and Oroville, and an Amtrak locomotive and crew works the train between Oroville and Spokane. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Falkland, Armstrong, Vernon, Kelowna, Naramata, Penticton, Skaha, Oliver, Sooyoos (BC customs checks)
 * Washington: Oroville (US customs checks), Chelan, Wenatchee


 * Smoke Eater/Stampeder (BCR/VIA Rail): Trail, BC – Calgary, Alberta, Canada
 * Daily service with a morning departure from each end using one VIA consist and one BCR consist, with VIA locomotives and crews working the VIA consists and BCR locomotives and crews working the BCR consists over the entire route; the westbound train is called "Smoke Eater", and the eastbound is the "Stampeder". This train runs over the trackage of the BCR between Trail and Nelson, and of the Canadian Pacific between Nelson and Calgary. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Nelson, Castlegar, Creston, Cranbrook
 * Alberta: Lethbridge


 * Klondike Limited (BCR): Prince George, BC – Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
 * Three trains run weekly in each direction, with northbound trains departing Prince George on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and southbound trains departing Whitehorse on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. This train runs entirely over BCR trackage and is operated with BCR equipment and crews. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Fort St James, Takla, Dease Lake, Porter Landing, Cassiar, Klinkit
 * Yukon: Teslin, Carcross


 * Aurora Borealis (BCR/VIA Rail): Edmonton, Alberta, Canada – Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada
 * Two trains run weekly in each direction using mixed consists of VIA rail coaches and BCR baggage, dining, sleeping, and sleeperette cars. Northbound trains depart Edmonton on Tuesday and Thursday, and southbound trains depart Whitehorse on Monday and Wednesday. This train runs over BCR trackage between Whitehorse and Dawson Creek, and over Canadian National trackage between Dawson Creek and Edmonton. One of the return trips are operated with BCR locomotives and crews, the other with VIA locomotives and crews. Intermediate stops:
 * Alberta: Slave Lake, McLennan, Grand Prairie, Beaver Lodge
 * BC: Dawson Creek, Chetwynd, Fort St James, Takla, Dease Lake, Porter Landing, Cassiar, Klinkit
 * Yukon: Teslin, Carcross


 * Alaska Limited (BCR/Alaska Railroad): Anchorage, Alaska, USA – Seattle, Washington, USA
 * This is a once-weekly service departing Seattle on Tuesdays and Anchorage on Fridays, consisting of two ARR and two BCR sleeping cars in the summer months and one ARR and one BCR sleeper in the winter. These consists operate as through cars attached to the Alaska Railroad's international semi-express service between Anchorage and Whitehorse, to the BCR "Klondike Limited" between Whitehorse and Prince George, to the BCR "Fraser-Skeena" domestic express between Prince George and Ashcroft, to the BCR "Inter-Dominion Limited" between Ashcroft and Vancouver, and to the W&BC/Amtrak "Cascades" international express between Vancouver and Seattle. Intermediate stops:
 * Alaska: Wasilla, Talkeetna, Denali, Fairbanks, Delta Junction, Dry Creek, Dot Lake, Tanacross, Tok, Tetlin, Northway, Alcan Border (US customs checks)
 * Yukon: Beaver Creek (Canadian customs checks), Snag Junction, Quill Creek, Burwash Landing, Destruction Bay, Kloo Lake, Haines Junction, Canyon, Champagne Landing, Ibex Valley, Whitehorse, Teslin, Carcross
 * BC: Klinkit, Cassiar, Porter Landing, Dease Lake, Takla, Fort St James, Prince George, Red Rock, Quesnel, Williams Lake, 100 Mile House, Clinton, Cache Creek, Ashcroft, Hope, Chilliwack, Vancouver (Pacific Central), White Rock (BC customs checks)
 * Washington: Blaine (US customs checks), Ferndale, Bellingham, Mount Vernon, Stanwood, Everett, Edmonds


 * Continental (BCR/VIA Rail): Vancouver, BC (Pacific Central) – Toronto, Ontario, Canada
 * Twice-weekly service with eastbound trains departing Vancouver on Mondays and Fridays, westbound trains leaving Toronto on Wednesdays and Sundays. VIA Rail consists are used, with BCR dining car operating on the train between Vancouver and Edmonton. BCR locomotives and crews work the train between Vancouver and Edmonton. This train operates as a limited express between Vancouver and Edmonton, and as a semi-express between Edmonton and Toronto. Intermediate stops (flag stops east of Edmonton not shown):
 * BC: Chilliwack, Hope, Ashcroft, Kamloops, Clearwater, Valemount, Yellowhead
 * Alberta: Jasper, Edmonton
 * Saskatchewan: Biggar, Saskatoon, Melville
 * Manitoba: Winnipeg
 * Ontario: Sioux Lookout, Hornepayne, Capreol, Sudbury Junction


 * Canadian/British Columbian (BCR/Canadian Pacific/VIA Rail): Vancouver, BC (Pacific Central) – Calgary, Alberta, Canada
 * Daily service with a morning departure from each end using one VIA consist and one BCR consist; the westbound train is called "British Columbian", and the eastbound is the "Canadian". This train runs over BCR trackage between Vancouver and Kamloops, and over CP trackage between Kamloops and Calgary; locomotive change takes place in Kamloops. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Chilliwack, Hope, Ashcroft, Kamloops, Salmon Arm, Sicamous, Blaenau, Golden, Field
 * Alberta: Lake Louise, Banff, Canmore


 * International Hiawatha (North Western Pacific/BCR): Vancouver, BC (Pacific Central) – Chicago, Illinois, USA
 * Twice-weekly service with eastbound trains departing Vancouver on Wednesdays and Saturdays, westbound trains leaving Chicago on Tuesdays and Fridays; all trains consist of NWP consists. This train runs over the trackage of the BCR between Vancouver and Castlegar, and over NWP trackage between Castlegar and Chicago; locomotive changes take place in Castlegar. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Hope, Princeton, Penticton, Grand Forks, Castlegar, Salmo, Nelway (BC and US customs checks)
 * Washington: Metaline Falls, Newport
 * Idaho: Spirit Lake
 * Washington: Spokane
 * Idaho: St Maries
 * Montana: Alberton, Missoula, Butte, Harlowton, Miles City
 * South Dakota: Morristown, Mobridge, Aberdeen
 * Minnesota: Ortonville, Minneapolis, St Paul, Winona
 * Wisconsin: La Crosse, Milwaukee
 * Illinois: Racine

Domestic
Limited Express trains on entirely domestic routes feature free baggage handling for both first and second classes, along with a cafeteria car open to both classes. These trains are all operated by the BCR with its own equipment over its own lines.


 * Sea-to-Sky Limited: North Vancouver – Whistler
 * Non-stop service during ski season only, with one daily return Monday through Thursday, three daily returns Friday through Sunday. Intermediate stops: none


 * Whistler Limited: Kamloops – Whistler
 * One daily return Thursday through Sunday during ski season only. Intermediate stops: Ashcroft, Clinton, Cache Creek


 * Powder King Special: Prince George – Azouzetta
 * One daily return Thursday through Sunday during ski season only. Intermediate stops: none

Regular Express
Regular Express trains stop more often than Limited Express trains, but do not make unscheduled stops. The BCR operates only one international regular Express train, the rest are all on domestic routes.

International

 * Gordon Highlander/Loyal Edmontonian: Prince George, BC – Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
 * One daily trip in each direction, operated entirely using BCR equipment and crews; on the Jasper–Edmonton section the train runs over Canadian National trackage. The westbound train is called "Gordon Highlander", the eastbound train is called "Loyal Edmontonian". The train includes a full-service dining car open to all classes; baggage handling is free of charge to first class passengers, and available to second class passengers for a surcharge. Intermediate stops:
 * BC: Willow River, Sinclair Mills, Loos, McBride, Tete Jaune Cache, Yellowhead
 * Alberta: Jasper, Hinton, Edson, Evansburg

Domestic
All domestic Express trains feature baggage handling free of charge to first class passengers, and available to second class passengers for a surcharge, and all include either a full-service dining car or a cafeteria car open to all classes. For travel between three or fewer domestic stops a surcharge is applied.


 * Cariboo Prospector: North Vancouver – Prince George
 * One daily return trip, with a dining car and a through sleeperette car to Ganiks Laxha – Prince Rupert. Intermediate stops: Squamish, Pemberton, Lillooet, Clinton, 100 Mile House, Williams Lake, Quesnel


 * Fraser-Skeena: Kamloops – Prince George
 * One daily except Sunday return trip, with a dining car and a through sleeperette car to Ganiks Laxha – Prince Rupert. Intermediate stops: Cache Creek, Clinton, 100 Mile House, Williams Lake, Quesnel, Red Rock


 * K'shian: Prince Rupert – Prince George
 * Three daily return trips with a cafeteria car. Intermediate stops: Ganiks Laxha, Kitwanga, Hagwilget, Witset, Lake Kathlyn, Telkwa, Houston, Burns Lake, Endako, Fraser Lake, Beaumont (winter only), Fort Fraser, Vanderhoof


 * Fraser Canyon: Vancouver (Pacific Central) – Kamloops
 * Two daily return trips with a cafeteria car. Intermediate stops: Chilliwack, Hope, Boston Bar, Lytton, Ashcroft


 * Rocky Mountaineer: Vancouver (Pacific Central) – Valemount
 * One daily overnight trip in each direction with sleeping cars (first class) and sleeperettes (second class), a cafeteria car, and one second-class chair car. The usual short-trip surcharge does not apply to this train. Intermediate stops: Chilliwack, Hope, Ashcroft, Kamloops, Barriere, Blackpool, Clearwater, Vavenby, Blue River


 * Phthauntac: Vancouver (Pacific Central) – Penticton
 * One daily overnight trip in each direction with sleeping cars (first class) and sleeperettes (second class), a cafeteria car, and one second-class chair car. The usual short-trip surcharge does not apply to this train. Intermediate stops: Chilliwack, Hope, Brodie, Brookmere, Tullameen, Princeton, Demuth


 * Okanagan Highlander: Kamloops – Sooyoos
 * Three daily return trips with a cafeteria car in the summer timetable, two in the winter timetable. Intermediate stops: Falkland, Armstrong, Vernon, Oyama, Kelowna, Naramata, Poplar Grove, Penticton, Skaha, Kaleden, Okanagan Falls, Oliver


 * Selkirk Mountaineer: Grand Forks – Nelson
 * Two daily return trips with a cafeteria car. Intermediate stops: Christina Lake, Castlegar, South Slocan


 * Monashee Mountaineer: Trail – Nelson
 * Two daily return trips with a cafeteria car. Intermediate stops: Waterloo, Castlegar, South Slocan


 * Kiskatinaw: Prince George – Dawson Creek
 * Two daily return trips with a dining car, one daily overnight trip in each direction with sleeping cars (first class) and sleeperettes (second class), a cafeteria car, and one second-class chair car. Intermediate stops: Summit Lake, Wakely, Kennedy, Azouzetta, Chetwynd, Arras


 * Tahltan Highlander: Dease Lake – Dawson Creek
 * One daily overnight trip in each direction with sleeping cars (first class) and sleeperettes (second class), a dining car, and two second-class chair car. Intermediate stops: Arras, Chetwynd, Azouzetta, Kennedy, Wakely, Summit Lake, Echo Lake, Tl'azt'en, Fort St James, Takla, Bulkley House

Rapid
Rapid (also known as "semi-express") trains are similar to regular Express trains, making a limited number of scheduled stops, but stops can be booked up to three hours in advance at any station on the route that has passenger service. The BCR operates only one international semi-express train; the rest are all domestic services.

International

 * Salishan Rapid (North Western Pacific/BCR): Vancouver (Pacific Central) – Glacier, Washington, USA
 * One daily return trip runs in the summer timetable with NWP equipment and crews; two daily return trips run in the winter timetable, one with BCR equipment, the other with NWP equipment. Locomotive and crew changes take place at Huntingdon, BC on eastbound trips, and at Sumas, Washington on westbound trips; both BC and US customs checks occur at these stations, and passengers may not board or disembark here. These trains feature first and second class chair cars and a cafeteria car; there is no baggage handling service. This train operates as an Express train in BC (flag stops cannot be booked), and as a Semi-Express in Washington. A surcharge applies for trips entirely within BC (i.e. travel only between Vancouver and Abbotsford). Scheduled intermediate stops:
 * BC: Abbotsford, Huntingdon (BC and US customs checks eastbound)
 * Washington: Sumas (BC and US customs checks westbound), Columbia, Maple Falls, Glacier

Domestic
These trains feature first and second class chair cars and a cafeteria car; baggage handling is free of charge for first class passengers, and available with a surcharge for second class passengers.


 * T'exelc Rapid (BCR): Williams Lake – Uhlk'acho
 * One daily return trip with second class chair cars and a cafeteria car (no first class). Unlike other semi-express trains, unscheduled stops on this train may be booked up to 20 minutes in advance. The short-trip surcharge is not applicable to this train. Scheduled intermediate stops: Hanceville, Tatla Lake, Nimpo Lake


 * Dakelh Rapid (BCR): Williams Lake – Prince George
 * One daily return trip with first and second class chair cars and a dining car. The short-trip surcharge applies only to trips between Prince George and Red Rock. Scheduled intermediate stops: Quesnel, Strathnaver, Red Rock, Pineview


 * Haisla Rapid (BCR/Skeena Pacific): Kemano – Prince Rupert
 * Four daily return trips with first and second class chair cars and a dining car; these trains do not have baggage handling. Two of the trains are operated with BCR equipment and crews, the other two with SPR equipment and crews; each railway has running rights over the other's tracks for these trains. The short-trip surcharge applies only to trips between Kemano and Ganiks Laxha. Scheduled intermediate stops: Kitimat, Ganiks Laxha


 * Telkwa Rapid (BCR): Prince Rupert – Smithers
 * Two daily return trips with first and second class chair cars and a cafeteria car; these trains do not have baggage handling. The short-trip surcharge applies regularly to this train. Scheduled intermediate stops: Ganiks Laxha, Kitwanga, Hagwilget, Witset, Lake Kathlyn