VANCOUVER — In the 32 years Colin Mann spent working on the railway, the engineer crushed his eyes shut more than a dozen times, sickly aware of his helplessness to make his engine avoid the impending destruction of a person or vehicle.

Nine of those accidents were fatal.

“There’s nothing you can do, you lay down on the floor or you close your eyes and you just don’t look,” Mann said, almost matter-of-fact during an interview.

Claude Mongeau presided over impressive results yesterday for his first quarter at the helm of Canadian National Railway Co.

The Montreal-based railroad's profits jumped more than 20 per cent to $511 million for the three months ended March 31 from $424 million in the year-earlier period. Revenues also grew by six per cent to $1.97 billion from $1.86 billion in the quarter last year.

Crossing upgrades welcome, says one

VANCOUVER, B.C. - Train engineer Gerry Richer knows the feeling of being completely helpless when he watches a vehicle race up to the tracks in front of his train.

Raymond James Financial Services analyst Steven Hansen told clients in a note Thursday that railroad recovery in Canada has reached astate of “reasonable health and vigor,” and he accordingly upgraded earnings estimates for both Canadian National and Canadian Pacific.