Caption: An eastbound freight rolls through Goreway interlocking (and over its namesake road crossing) on CN's Halton Sub with CN C630M's 2026 and 2004 in the lead. In the background, a set of power (M636, M420W and HR616) sits on one of the leads to Brampton Intermodal Terminal, probably waiting to leave for MacMillan Yard for servicing after dropping their train at BIT.

Built in the late 1970's on what was once Chinguacousy Township farmland, Brampton Intermodal Terminal is CN's main GTA-area intermodal terminal and handles traffic going to and coming from Western Canada, Eastern Canada, and the USA. BIT was expanded at various points in time to handle the growning volume of intermodal traffic (although right now it's constrained by development on all sides, and CN is looking at opening another terminal in Milton). The twin leads at the south end connect with CN's Halton Sub at Goreway and Torbram.

The earliest mention of BIT I've found is in some 1975 City of Brampton council minutes. It had been reported as various names before it opened, including "Malport Intermodal Terminal", "Bramalea Intermodal Terminal" (Bramalea amalgamated with Brampton in 1976), "Brampton Intermodal Terminal", and most curious, "Bramport Intermodal Terminal". It appears to have opened as Brampton Intermodal Terminal in 1979 though (for a 1981 aerial view showing how it originally looked, see here (on the left). There was a "ConPort" terminal at MacMillan Yard that likely handled what container and piggyback traffic there was prior to BIT opening (located at the north end of the yard near the old piggyback terminal).

Keith Hansen photo, Dan Dell'Unto collection slide.