Out of Ottawa we hear that federal Transport Minister David Collenette is keenly interested in pumping as much as $2 billion into a plan that would see the creation of another rail line in the Montreal to Windsor corridor, that could divert as many as 80,000 truckloads of cargo per day off the 401 onto railway cars.

The plan is reportedly being pushed by Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) CEO, Robert Ritchie. And Minister Collenette is quoted as saying "the notion of trying to improve the intermodal split is one that I'm keen on."

Wow, a Trudeau-era Minister is hot to trot for a multi-billion dollar mega-project: what a surprise, not!

Indeed, this is the second flashy rail proposal this year. Earlier this spring, Canadian National (CN) boss Paul Tellier proposed a shipper tax credit for shippers that move cargo off the roads onto unused rail lines.

At first glance, these proposals are appealing. Less trucks on the road means less congestion. Reduced congestion means fewer accidents (although most truck accidents are caused by bad car drivers, not truckers). And fewer trucks means less wear-and-tear on the highway.

The rail folk go on to state that truck drivers are stressed and overworked, rigs on the road are unsafe, fuel costs are on the rise and its difficult for government officials to effectively enforce trucking/cargo regulations. Hmm, interesting points as well.

Finally, the railway barons are effectively playing the environmental card by asserting that fewer trucks on the roads also results in less energy consumption and lower greenhouse gas emissions. Sounds appealing on a variety of levels, doesn't it But let's dig a little deeper and ask some relevant questions.

To begin, what is the opportunity cost of dropping $2 billion for a new rail line to service just two provinces Would $2 billion not be better spent on upgrading capacity on dozens of highways across several provinces

Intermodal transport could entail shipping from truck in Quebec City to railcars in Montreal and back onto trucks again in Toronto. Ask any economist, money is usually made at the transfer point. More middle players means higher transaction costs which will ultimately pass through to consumers at Loblaws, WalMart or FutureShop.

Nest question. If intermodal transport is good business, and apparently it's CN's fastest growing business unit, why are these companies banging on Ottawa's doors for help

Ooops, excuse me, I temporarily forgot we're in Canada where government grant seeking is an age-old favourite at the business-financing buffet. Which brings us to query number four.

Why are these two publicly-traded, private companies - in an industry averaging 10% growth a year over the past five years - wanting to partner with government No need to answer, just refer to the paragraph above.

Intermodal transport plans have some appeal. Both CN and CPR have made great strides in this area by improving cargo services, having on-schedule trains, and modernized cargo transfer facilities at rail terminals. It's called good business.

But the CN and CPR proposals to government are far from good public policy. They represent corporate welfare for railways. A $2 billion ticket to ride the rails is not what taxpayers need. Minister Collenete, please remove your conductor's cap.