The Ontario government is moving ahead with preliminary design work, as well as spending $15 million on a comprehensive environmental assessment, to kickoff a process aimed at establishing a high speed rail (HSR) corridor between Toronto and Windsor. Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne, Steven Del Duca, Ontario's Minister of Transportation, and Deb Matthews, MPP for London North Centre, made the announcement in London Friday.

“Building high speed rail along the Toronto-Windsor corridor isn’t just a game changer for Southwestern Ontario - it’s going to deliver benefits all along the line.” said Wynne. “Seven million people live along the Toronto-Windsor transportation corridor. High speed rail will get them where they need to be faster. Whether it means accepting a job that previously seemed too far away, visiting family more often or having ready access to the innovators who can take your business growth to the next level - high speed rail will make a real difference in people’s lives and drive economic growth and jobs.”

The Toronto-Windsor corridor is one of Ontario’s most diverse and vibrant regions. It is home to more than 7 million people and accounts for 3.4 million jobs and over 50% of Ontario’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

“High speed rail will have a transformative impact on travel in Southwestern Ontario, helping people to innovate, connect with each other, and travel for work, study and play.” Added Del Duca. “This is just one part of our plan to invest in transit across the province — connecting communities and supporting growth in jobs and the economy.”

A report commissioned by the Ontario government and carried out by former federal transport minister David Collenette, was also released Friday, in which Collenette was asked to assess the project's feasibility. After extensive consultations, his report concluded that there is a business case for high speed rail along the Toronto-Windsor corridor and that there are opportunities to engage the private sector in financing and delivering the project.

The report recommended that HSR in the Toronto-Windsor corridor be implemented in two phases, with phase one connecting Toronto with Kitchener-Waterloo and London by 2025, with phase two extending the route to Windsor. Proposed stops on the new high-speed rail line include Windsor, Chatham, London, Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and Toronto, as well as a connection to Pearson International Airport which would free up capacity at Pearson now taken up by short-haul flights.

It appears that HSR in Ontario would not be operated by VIA Rail and in fact, the report proposes that HSR replace VIA Rail on the Kitchener corridor, in order to ensure the route is not over-served. VIA Rail would still maintain a number of services in Southwestern Ontario and a codesharing agreement between VIA Rail and HSR could be established which would ensure that the rail system in Southwestern Ontario is seamless and integrated.

The high-speed rail link between Toronto and Windsor could cut travel times between the cities from four hours to just over two, enabling businesses to “attract the best talent, increase their productivity and support a low-carbon innovation economy”, according to a release from the Ontario Government.

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