A lobby group is hoping that the non-profit that manages Vancouver Island’s rail line will change its tune about use of the tracks.

A lobby group is hoping that the non-profit that manages Vancouver Island’s rail line will change its tune about use of the tracks.

Friends of Rails to Trails Vancouver Island envisions a continuous active transportation trail on the rail corridor, which covers close to 290 kilometres from Victoria to Courtenay, with additional sections in Parksville, Nanaimo, and Port Alberni. The rail is owned and managed by Island Corridor Foundation and the group hopes local governments back a request to the foundation that other transportation be allowed on the rail bed.

A report from the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure projected it would cost $700 million to repair the rail line and restore service, but Andrea Thomas, foundation corridor development manager, said that estimate includes a 97 per cent contingency. ICF estimates the cost would be closer to $390 million with a “more reasonable contingency” for the entire line, Thomas said.

The foundation supports active transportation alongside the rail corridor, she said, and noted that there are many issues involved, including Indigenous land rights.

According to Alastair Craighead - the chairperson for the Friends of Rails to Trails group, the Comox regional district has directed its ICF board representative to propose a motion at the next foundation meeting to amend its mandate to allow other options for the rail bed.