Reasons for the Railroad
Trade
The Trade Routs Along The Railroad
There were three main reasons for the railroad to be built; trade between the provinces defense from the United States, and to unite the colonies in confederation. The Canadian Pacific railway needed to be building to help Canada trade between the colonies. Also if there were no railroad than many of the products manufactured in Canada would need to be sold in the United States because without a continent way to transport goods throughout Canada there would be no trade between the colonies. Also, one train can pull the equivalent of two hundred and eighty trucks and with five times more fuel efficiency. This has saved more than forty million litters of gasoline since the railroad was built.
Defence
The Battle of the Red River Rebellion
If the railroad was not built then is more than likely that Canada would have been overthrown and controlled by the United States. On the West coast of North America, there was thought that British Columbia would join the United States. This posed a threat to Canada because if the United States controlled the whole west coast they would then be able to take over Canada. Furthermore, in 1827 it took three months to send troops to the Red River rebellion. If the railroad were built it would have only taken days to send troops and minimizing the death toll.
Confederation
Quebec Conference for Confederation
To create confederation was the greatest factor leading to the building of the railway. Without confederation the colonies would not be functioning properly. Most of the colonies would join the United States and others would be taken over. But, before this the colonies would be numerous problems with war between colonies and trade issues. To conclude, the reasons for the railroad being built were so compelling so the railroad must have been built.