Under DOSCO ownership, the CR&C operated its Springhill mines as efficiently as possible, however by the 1950s, demand for coal was softening as railways dieselized and alternative heating fuels were implemented. DOSCO made few capital investments in the Springhill mines as production was winding down, which is believed to have contributed to two mining tragedies in that decade. The 1956 Explosion was caused by a runaway mine tram on November 1, 1956 and killed 39 miners. (see 1956 Explosion under Springhill mining disaster) The mines returned to production in January 1957 however few improvements were made, other than what was necessary to begin mining again. Declining export markets for Springhill coal saw the CR&C decide to stop shipments through the port of Parrsboro in the summer of 1958. The last train operated to Parrsboro on June 14. That fall saw the final chapter in Springhill mining history. The 1958 Bump was caused by the use of "room and pillar" mining techniques up until the late 1930s, creating undue stress on the local geology. Despite using the newer "long wall retreating" method, a devastating bump on October 23, 1958 killed 74 miners when the collieries collapsed. Following the 1958 Bump, DOSCO never reopened the mine and abandoned all of its mining properties in the Springhill Coal Field, throwing thousands out of work and devastating the economy of central Cumberland County. The CR&C railway limped on for a few years after the closure of the coal mines. After June 14, 1958, the southern terminus of the railway was in Southampton, to serve blueberry packers there. Scheduled CR&C service was reduced to one daily round trip between Springhill and Springhill Junction. Traffic continued to decline, and permission to commence abandonment of the line was granted in February 1961. The last train ran in 1962, and the last of the tracks were lifted in 1964. Foray onto Cape Breton Island DOSCO wasn't quite finished with its CR&C subsidiary. In 1961, DOSCO had the Cumberland Railway (which, like its predecessor the Spring Hill and Parrsborough Railway had a federal railway charter, thus qualifying it for federal railway subsidies) assume the operations of the Sydney and Louisburg Railway on Cape Breton Island. The reason for this change in title was that the S&L had been formed under a provincial charter in 1910, which made it ineligible for federal railway subsidies. Thus the Cumberland Railway name continued