Caption: By the beginning of 1996, both CN and CP had completed the deliveries of their latest motive power. CN’s order of SD70I’s (5600-5625) and CP’s order of AC4400CW’s (9500-9582) had assisted both railways with easing some of their previous motive power constraints. While summer prior, CP had officially retired their last big MLW’s, they still had an active roster of RS18u’s and C-424’s operating in Ontario and Quebec. As well, despite the addition of the 83 new AC4400CW’s, the railway continued to lease hundreds of units through various companies, mainly Helm Leasing. CN continued to roster a small number of operating M-636’s, plus had their HR-616’s, M-420(W)’s and HR-412(W)’s working mainly in Ontario to eastern Canada. However, the company’s next big order was due to start arriving that summer, in the form of 105 new SD75I’s from GMDD in London, starting at CN 5626. Additionally, the start of the Canadian shortline takeover of CN and CP’s unwanted secondary lines and branchlines was still over a year away. Although, many had already fallen or were in the process of being abandoned. Two local examples were the CP Owen Subdivision from Orangeville to Owen Sound and the CN Newton Subdivision from Stratford to Palmerston, as well as the remainder of the CN Owen Sound Subdivision to Harriston.
Here, the Goderich-Exeter Railway (GEXR) takeover of the CN Guelph Subdivision was just under two years away as CN GP9RM 4101 leads one boxcar through downtown Waterloo on the Waterloo Spur. The 15:30 Kitchener Job was taking the car to Commonwealth Plywood in north Waterloo and would then return light power back to the Kitchener Yard.