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a community presents its case briel from rud whiting mp hahon brief from chamber of commerce and development commission first it should be made clear to all concerned that the acton chamber of commerce does not support fetherbedding of any kind nor do we believe in doing business in an irrational or uneconomical manner however we do believe that the concept of service is a valid even necessary approach to doing business the town of acton is a manufacturing town moreover it is an exporting town and in the days when export figures were published acton exported more than georgetown and brampton combined in 196s our exports amounted to a fraction less than 20 million and of course our imports were of corresponding significance approximately si i million i suggest that a town which moves goods lor 31 million per year provides a gdod economic background for anyone in the transportation business and probably one of the reasons why this towncan show these high manufacturing figures is that the cn decided to huild a staiion here to do business you must have a desire to serve your customers to their satisfaction j the chamber recently surveyed all industries and commercial enterprises n acton and all answers received declared themselves dissatisfied with the canadian national railways attitude to doing business those who did not answer when queried replied that the cn did not care about their views their beliefs were that the canadian national was following a master plan of closing stations in smaller towns everywhere and nothing we could do or uy would stop it enclosed is a sample of the chamber of commerce questionnaire of course the c n still provides freight and express service to this town but in a manner which is much less attractive to its customers personally i often picked up my shipments at the station at 8 oclock in the morning rather than waiting for delivery by the local carrier in those days wc invariably had overnight service from toronto wc in the chamber believe that the c n station has contributed to this towns buinsess life and although we cannot document it we believe the c n has derived a reasonable profit from its operation here we have not been shown anything to the contrary neither has the c n provided us with any proof that it will derive a greater profit from operating under a kitchenerguelph master agency plan it may be better for canadian nationals business in the whole region but we doubt if it is better for anybody in acton to deal with an outoftown agent we are also concerned with the future it is conceivable that we will need an intensified commuter service in the future some people will be greatly inconvenienced immediately when this station n closed we fear that once closed it will be very difficult to have the station reopened no matter what the need might be also it is a safety feature to have an operator at the station since he could receive and relay messages and in an emergency stop the train as this region becomes more and more urbanized and the roads more congested the c n will have many more potential customers it is conceivable there will be a technical breakthrough in transportation making it possible to cheaply establish a gotype service between this region and toronto in which case the cn station would be a valuable asset for all concerned we therefore recommend that if it is unavoidable to remove the staff from the station that the building be retained and kept in good repair brief from student council acton district high school the acton free press wednesday october 23 1968 3 station hearing conffnuid from pace 1 probably the most lively part of the meeting ensued when jessie coles and mrs howard dwyer speaking from their experience as managers of mail order offices related some of the problems they faced under a master agency miss coles said she had been working in the mail order office for 13 years and has never had to face such shocking conditions before she told of countless occasions when orders didnt arrive came only partly or couldnt be traced its no joke she told the railwaymen when you have to fjee customers with the same stories of parcels not arriving we had good service when we had the express here she maintained mrs dwyer was equally outspoken the service is both rotten and costly she said simple little boxes arrive in slued after obviously sitting somewhere it takes over a week sometimes tor parcels to arrive from toronto mr rupert and express superintendent l a wood both said that there were some kinks to iron out yet tn the muster plan but the late shipments werent necessarily the tjult ot the railway utlen the deluy lay ui the plant or warehouse trom where they were shipped brandishing copies ot invoices and bills ot lading roy gooduin challenged to cnr on that statement and related an experience he had had concerning a telegram which pointed out the importance ot having an agency m acton these things didnt happen said mr goodwin when there was service ui acton our troubles didnt begin nov b 1c7 our troubles began when the express moved away ui the fipt place id do anything now but ship by express asked why he didnt complain betore mr goodwin replied he had no opportunity to and no choice but to look for a better means of transportation mayor duby said tins was the reason no major uidustries attended the meetings they were luippy with other service now reeve hmton stressed that uw high school brief brought up a good point in planning for the future he was concerned about rapid transit and passenger service as well as being receptive to the idea of a dormitory town goods and services are a hard thing for laymen to understand however the reeve said he suggested the cnr s master agency plan required the same kind of intestinal fortitude school boards must have to implement new educational concepts despite criticism local people had not taken advantage of the situation the railway created when it withdrew service by substituting service of their own he maintained the service shutdown had been beneficial to local truckers who now carried the goods the railway lost many are employed with these companies so the result is more jobs for local people this brought a question from mrs dwyer who asked mr hinton how local companies benefitted if the station was closed what you are saying is nothing really she admonished the reeve do we have local transport companies delivering the express noand the acton company that bid for the contract was turned down v the chairman said the express didnt matter in tins meeting because the rauway would never go back to delivering from small stations he stressed that the meeting was to decide how a nun at the station would affect business remove the agent said mrs dwyer and you are gomg to lose any of the business you have m acton questioned by mrs gloria browne and the mayor mr gues said georgetown station would remain open but he thought fergus was going to be closed although he was unsure of the latter was acton station losing money not likely answered mr giles who admitted the railroad had no means of knowing whether a single station lost or nude money the cnr hat done everything it could to do away with the agent tt the acton rud l whiting m p llalton regarding the application of canadian national railways remove the agent at acton ontario the closing of the acton station next month by the canadian national radway is in my opinion a direct reflection on the image of acton as a community and a definite deterrent to the future progress of the town i therefore unequivocally endorse any action of the municipality and the citizens of the town in an effort to prevent such action on the part of the railway it was just over a year ago october 13 967 to be exactylhit mr r t vaughan vicepresident of the canadian national radwayi wrote to dr harry harley who at that time was federal representative for halton county advising him tjiat the first stages 1 of implementation of what the railway tails the master agency plan would be put into effect on november fth of that year this first stage mr vanghan pointed out involved the taking away of certain work from the station and placing it in the hands of the master agency in guelph but that ihc agent would remain on the premises but would not carry out any work as far as the public was concerned this was to be in the nature of an experimental period which would probably last until midjanuary or early february of this year the railway further stated that following this trial period the whole matter would by reviewed and looked at in the light of whether an application should be made to the canadian trnsporl commission for approval to institute the master agency plan in tins area apparently the matter was reviewed by the railway and a decision madeuo the light of its effect on rjilway opcr it ion il mi no users oflhe railway were asked to give any facts or express their views as tol the effect or this rearrangement of service it would almost appeal to be a case of the public be damned only now in this hearing are the municipality organizations and individuals oeing given the opportunity to express their views only now is this being done after advertisements have been prepared for the local press and announcements to be sent through the mail announcing the demise of the cnr station in acton ind its replacement by the master agency plan we are aware that the master agency plan has already been introduced by the railway in various areas throughout the country in order to effect internal economies this as citi7cns wc must applaud the canadian national being a crown corporation any operating savings reflect directly on the canadian taxpayer however there is also a question of equity involved in this plan in order to save money for the railway and the rest of the country the people of acton are being asked to pay a high price one single- but costly example which was brought to my attention was clearance of shipments in bond these must now be done in guelph and while certain companies hcretofor cnployed their own brokerage department they now have the added cost and inconvenience of using a customs broker in guelph but equally important to added costs and inconvenience people will endure these things if they feel it is for the common good is the psychological effect of this move on the community acton has a lot to offer to prospective industry it is a town beautifully situated in a setting of agriculture and unspoiled surroundings it is close to metropolitan markets and populated areas it is a town with a progressive plan for orderly development action as envisaged by the canadian national would in my opinion have a retrograde effect that would be difficult to ameliorate one of the reasons why the people of canada have been willing to support the canadian national railways was because of the unifying and development influences they have been able to exert the people are willing to recognize a certain deviation from practices inherent in the private enterprise system on their part in the closing of the acton station as proposed by the canadian national radway it is my opinion that the welfare of the people of acton is a much more important consideration than any economic gains on the pari of the railroad rud l whiting mp producers honor legion choraliers continued from pafl 1 councillor drinkwalter clerk joe hurst and the town engineer were present the mayor reported they were favorably met some of the residents who signed a petition about the drainage problem will attend the next no 2 committee meeting problem of safety patrols and crosswalks for the m z bennett school pupils was discussed and referred back to no 2 committee a letter from the school advised a student safety patrol had been established at the corner of mdl and young st and councds support was asked in the establishment of a department of highways sign and painted crosswalks the roads committee informed the school they were already considering crosswalks at mdl and wdlow queen and acton blvd and main st at elizabeth dr the problem arose with the changed boundaries and shift system stationeven removing the telephone and left him sitting as a useless individual the agent knows this too the cnr 11 not giving acton a fair shake if it removes him and closes the station concluded mr goodwin the chairman said he would make his report to the rauway transport committee and they would nuke the final decision on the nutter would the report be nude public no mr rupert said closing the books and adjourning the meeting railway representatives at the liearuig included mr giles don croft l a wood ii srurpe h d kinlock and gord souter councillor ted tyler said it would be better if the m b students walked along the side of the highway to acton ulvd and crossed there with the crossing guard its a matter ol changing the pattern he said it was pointed out there is no sidewalk there flashing lights will be inst jllotl at the mill and park corner in an effort to slow tralfic on mill st one red light will face park ave and the two amber lights will face east and west on mill other solutions for the traffic problem here ate being considered there are two more tralfic problem corners a letter will go to the department of highways concerning the possible installation of amber lights at young and i astern ave and at main and guelph the latter nejrtoths garage involves the junction of two highways turning lelt i com highway v 7 onto highway j north involves going up a gradi to the rjilrojd track a traffic survey is 10 in conducted here soon deputyreeve dr ojkcsniuscd a second or two and announced bud mcdonald was the neve when this problem first rose at a committee meeting the clerk had been asked to contact several e o in m 1 r c 1 a i establishments to request a cleanup councillor ty lei said he noticed the uoik was being done at one place already asphalting ol peel st ditches wul not be completed until the drainage on churchill rd n is finished restrictions in heavy trallie might be instituted on churchill rd s due to the rapid deterioration of the surface the clerk was to check with the department of highways the meetuig was unusually short ending at 0 30 pan all council members were piescnt with clerk joe hurst must stop fins weeks safely tip from const t r penrlce safety officer of milton o p p concerns school buses with the school term now in full swing the attention of drivers is again directed to sec 94 2 of the highway traffic act ace 4 2 where a school bus is stopped on a highway or part of a highway on which the maximum speed limited is greater than t miles per hour for the purpose of receiving or ihc school bus on which the words do not pass when signals flashing are marked and two red signallights are illuminated hyanteriiiittont flashes and b when meeting oh such ar highway other than a highway student uriel re- c nik losing of acton station i lie leisou for this stiidenl brief regarding the closing of actons railway slation is to show that the young people of acton are not ipathelic towards community affairs they reihe that they are the 0111s who will live with decisions tint are made today the student body of alton high hive demonstrated their opinion on this matter through 1 noil conducted if the sihool an overwhelming majority of discharging school childrcn 3 percent lie opposed to the closing of tile slution after a detailed driver of a vehicle analysis into fins controvcrsiil 111 liter tins committee has arrived at a when overtaking sever il conclusions it feels th it this student brief should receive an iirthiised and jtisf consideration i rom an i c onomic vii wioint the n r s lack of proper services has in the pas caused alton industry to adopt other modes of freight transportation which has proved inure lostly tolliem and results in no business for cnr tlus trend should not h ivc to continue if the cnr accominoditcs lo our induskul needs acton is in 1 40 mile radius of toronto and is in the centre of a highly industrial area which should show that it i hcricliciil to c tsl to have here an open station as taken from the oil 10 ilok issue of the acton free- press the aniiu il report ol n showed passenger service was a profit miking operation for the year ifi7 therefore wc conclude that the cnr cannot he losing money ind is using this as a poor excuse i iiiiiri 11 vi iopmi nt acton is 1 dormiinry tt n wiih one third of the population working outside of town and with one third of the labor force from out of town acton is in ideal spol for the overflow of toronto area residenls to 111 ike their home in the past is years two new subdivisions h ivc bull construed d ind mother is getting underway in the spring ii is necessiry tint there he an equal balance of industry ind resident il t ixpiycrs to prevent an overload of taxes on the residents is was the c ise in oakvillc unless railway facilities are provided new industries will exclude acton from heir choice of future sites mil the procr h it nice will be upset is it necessary to remind you th it the t n r is 1 government company into which every taxpayer in acton has been p lying for over a century si rvic i vii wpoini an ex iinple ol the deplorable service to this community was illustritcd less than 4k hours ago two telephone calls were placed one in the morning and one 111 late evening in both calls the 7cnith number listed connected us with the freight service which has no ivitl ible inlorin ition concerning passenger schedules in one call pissenger schedules depirlment wis finally connected after a one ind a hall hour del ly we found that in order to obtain this iniormition one must call a long distance number this is contary to 1 weekly idvcrtilcmcnt placed in the local newspaper previously inlorm ition and tickets were readily and easily available i inai cn i1ision 4 we fell that it the c n r closes the station the railway or the citiens of acton should put the building to some constructive use and not let it tail to rums ii is our opinion that if the cnr is not willing to provide a useful service for acton then our citiens should not he submitted to the air pollution traffic hazard noise making and general nuisance resulting from the passing of trains through their community two weeks ago a woman was fatally injured in this town rhercforc we think these hazards slujuld be eliminated by rerouting the railway line unless it can be of service to us we are paying for cnr train service we dont have it we want it ad hoc c ommittec- ol student council with separate roadways a school bus on the front of which two red signallights are illuminated with intermittent flashes shall stop hie vehicle before reaching the school bus and shall not proceed until the school bus resumes motion or the signallights are no longer flashing milton opp detachment has again this week received complaints of vehicles disobeying this section when you are driving on our highways via asl be alert at all times we do not want to have any of our children hurt or killed by a careless drivel passing a stopped school bus saysxbnsf penrice h s holden i oftomimsr m cock st eart cuelth phone ta 27iw halloween trick or treat i thursday october 31 juit like magic your halloween party is a bewitching success with our favors candles serviettes decorations costumes make up kits wigs false faces masks and many other spooky spoclals shop now and choose mom our iarob siiktion see our large auehntent of halloween bulk candy hallowoen gums jolly boans harvest mix kisses peanuts in shell etc also economy priced packages of bagged chocolate bars bubble gum suckers potato chips priced from 25c to 99c plcg mntons 5c to 1 store th star that oivm veo utter chole swttaf quality lewtf prua authorized aa smniiu ctaia mall by tha port ottla dipt otlawn tor poiutfe paid r ull numhi r when an operator asked a long distance caller at a coin telephone what nuinher he was calling trom she got no response the number she explained is right there on the dial after a brief hesitation the caller replied oh i 2 4 s 6 7 h 0 apples scouts and cubs raised about 240 last saturday when they held their yearly apple day rutarians assisted with transportation the shiny apples were the boys way of saying thank you for donations multiply your money moores regal wall satin interior latex paint vr lh omuouk ikrk buy a highest interestyet canada savings bond at the bank af montreal and in 1 4 years got back 2a times what you ve put in 250 for every s1 00 invested and yon can boy by instalments the bank of montreal sells canada savings bonds by instalments as well as for cash you can buy yours for 5o down balance in easy payments over a year so easy to app soapy satei cli 1090 punts moore mooretone interior latex moored 705 gordon hardware p limited 32 mjk st e ssa irak 250 down for a 5000 bond i2 500 2500 5000 down i down down fora fora fora 10000 50000 100000 bond bond bond get your canada savings bonds now at the bank of montreal qb s bank of montreal canadas hrat bank