High Speed Rail Ready To Roll Over Eastern Ontario – Eventually

Jeff Green | May 07, 2025

One of the implications of the return to power of the Federal Liberals is to have kept alive a commitment made in the dying days of the Trudeau government to move forward with the high speed rail project between Quebec City and Toronto, with stops in Ottawa, and Peterborough.

The commitment by the Trudeau government was followed by an announcement on March 21.

A Crown Corporation, Alto (formerly known as VIA HFR) and its partner Cadence (a private sector consortium including several large transportation entities, CDPQ Infra, AtkinsRéalis, Keolis, SYSTRA Canada, Air Canada and SNCF Voyageurs, have made what is described in an Alto media release as the “the tangible progress of the high-speed rail network between Toronto and Québec City.”

“This important step marks the beginning of the important design and development phase of this ambitious project, announced on February 19, 2025, by the Government of Canada. It also marks a critical step in improving mobility within the country,” the release continued.

Alto said that a decision had to be made about whether to build a conventional rail system or a high speed rail system.

An earlier iteration of the plan was called a “High Frequency Rail” system. But that concept has been supplanted by a high speed rail proposal with the sole goal of linking major population centres along the corridor.

Alto posted an “explanatory document” on their site, which discusses the decision to jettison a the conventional high frequency rail proposal with trains travelling up to 200 km/hr, for the high speed proposal with trains travelling at 300 km/hr.

“High-Speed Rail (HSR) is expected to attract up to 13 times more passengers than the current intercity rail services. It will also offer significantly greater, long-term financial sustainability as it is projected to capture significantly higher ridership than the conventional rail solution.

A fast and frequent service will encourage a greater modal shift. As a result, HSR will generate more revenue, enabling it to fully fund its operations and achieve self-sufficiency. Above all, this is the project that Canadians are expecting.”

Travel times were a key factor. The high speed trains are expected to travel from Montreal to Ottawa in 58 minutes and from Montreal to Toronto in 3hrs, 7 minutes.

The current plan includes 7 stops: Quebec City, Trois Rivieres, Laval, Montreal, Ottawa, Peterborough, and Toronto. That may change however as the explanatory document says “The final network alignment will be defined during the development phase”.

According to Alto, the phase announced on March 21 will “confirm the route, obtain the necessary environmental permits and acquire the necessary land. It will also be used to pursue more concrete discussions with First Nations representatives and host communities. This work will enable the cost, financial structure and timetable for the project to be established.”

The fact that the project was given the green light by the Trudeau government in late February, just before Trudeau's resignation took effect, made the future of it a bit muddy. But since the Liberals under new Prime Minister Mark Carney won a mandate on April 28, and the High Speed Rail project was included in the Liberal Party platform, it would appear it will continue to progress.

The Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus (EOWC), which includes 103 member municipalities in Eastern Ontario, has expressed the concern that the current iteration of the project will bring disruption to the region through expropriations and threats to wildlife, with little or no benefit to communities along the route.

In a letter to Martin Imbleau, the President and CEO of Alto, EOWC Chair Bonnie Clark wrote the following: “On behalf of the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus (EOWC) and our 103 member municipalities, we are writing to raise our concerns on the Prime Minister’s
announcement today regarding the Alto high-speed rail network development plan between Toronto and Quebec City.

“While the EOWC supports transportation expansion across rural and small-urban communities as a long-standing priority, if built, this project will cut through our region’s communities without bringing benefits to local businesses, trail systems, tourist destinations, or our 800,000+ residents.

“The EOWC is urging that additional train stop(s) be included across Eastern Ontario as part of the Alto high-speed rail system. Additional stop(s) will improve transit across our rural and small-urban communities as well as strengthen regional
connections. However, we have long-standing concerns about the impact of the proposed rail route on the integrity of our recreational trail network as an economic driver, central activity, and transit network for our residents and tourists.”

Clark added that the EOWC has communicated these concerns before and is hopeful that it will be able to work with Alto to make sure the project brings benefits to its members.

Chief Doreen Davis of the Shabot Obaadjiwan has also been in contact with Alto officials, as the proposed rail line could pass through the proposed White Duck Provincial Park that is slated for development once the Algonquin Land Claim is finally settled.

She said that she has also been talking about how the proposed railroad line can bring benefits locally.

Alto includes reference to Indigenous communities in their documentation about the project.

“Our vision for this project goes beyond infrastructure development. We are committed to establishing a nation-to-nation relationship with Indigenous Peoples, fostering economic reconciliation, and creating socio-economic benefits for communities.

“The Corridor is currently home to over 40 Indigenous communities with more than 35,000 residents. The exclusion of Indigenous communities from Canada’s economy has contributed to disparities in socio-economic outcomes between Indigenous Peoples and other Canadians.

By actively involving Indigenous participation in every stage of project development, we strive to contribute to improving the quality of life for Indigenous Peoples along the Corridor.”

If built, the new rail service will require an investment of as much as $100 billion in government and/or private sector funds.