Photo: Dr. Jean-Paul Rodrigue, 2011.Grain Elevator Rail Terminal, Regina, SaskatchewanThe grain elevator is a fundamental element of the structuring
effect of rail on
the resource landscape through the dynamics of collection, sorting and distribution
of grain in agricultural regions. The terminal is simply a rail spur
where grain wagons can be loaded on the side of the facility.
Grain is brought by truck to the facility where it will be sorted
and stored by type. Large grain unit trains can be assembled to carry
the output of a series of grain elevators to
port facilities and then to
international markets.When introduced in the 19th century, there was
roughly a grain elevator and its associated rail terminal every 10 to 15
km along a rail line. This represented the radius around which
agricultural resources could effectively be collected by road
transportation. Three significant processes transformed this spatial
relation by reducing the number of terminals required to collect the
output of agricultural regions. The first was the general improvement in
road transportation which enabled to carry agricultural commodities in
greater quantities, over longer distances and at a lower cost. The
second was the application of economies of scale in rail transportation,
enabling the assembly of longer unit trains. Better services and lower
transport rates were offered to facilities that could handle a greater
amount of rail cars at their siding. The third involved changes in
the commercial environment with agricultural ownership
and practices towards corporate farming as well as rail
deregulation where rail companies abandoned several unprofitable
services, which included spurs to smaller grain elevators.
