The head of the country’s high-speed rail project says the Greater Toronto Area could be home to two stations rather than one as previously planned.
In an interview with The Canadian Press, Alto chief executive Martin Imbleau said the GTA “will probably require a secondary station,” though no final decision has been made.
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He says the station would likely sit in a nearby suburb, attracting more passengers from the surrounding region and allowing access to the line while construction on the costlier final leg into downtown Toronto is completed.
So far, the federal government has mandated seven stops: Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa, Laval, Que., Montreal, Trois-Rivières, Que., and Quebec City.
The proposed network would host 72 trains a day running on dedicated electric tracks at speeds breaching 300 km/h, slashing current travel times.
However, the project has garnered backlash from a grassroots coalition of farmers and small-town residents as well as the federal Conservatives, who say the rail corridor would cleave communities and offer locals few benefits while costing taxpayers billions of dollars.
So while Quebec gets 4 stations, Ontario gets 3, does Western Canada even have daily train service? And how fast is the semi-daily service?
High speed rail reduces traffic on the road, and in the air. Nobody should be against this except the NIMBY’s.