Manitoba pushes to move grain crop

WINNIPEG — Manitoba is relaxing weight restrictions on provincial roads to help move more grain and ease a current backlog.

The province says the one-time amendment will help farmers move grain to strategic locations from where it can be shipped to market.

Weight restrictions are usually imposed in the spring when rain and thawing can weaken the road. A bumper crop combined with a transportation bottleneck has left grain sitting in bins across the Prairies.

Ottawa has ordered Canada’s rail companies to double the amount of grain they ship in a week or face fines.