Ottawa moves forward with Toronto-Quebec City high-speed rail

The federal government is moving ahead with plans for high-speed rail between Toronto and Quebec City.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Transport Minister Anita Anand revealed the details at a press conference on Wednesday morning.

The Liberal government says the planned rail network will span approximately 1,000 kilometres and reach up to 300 kilometres an hour.

There will be stops in Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa, Montreal, Laval, Trois-Rivieres and Quebec City.

The government says the new system will cut travel times in half, allowing travellers to travel from Montreal to Toronto in three hours.

The official name of the high-speed rail service will be Alto.

“Canada is getting high-speed rail,” said Trudeau. “Today’s announcement of Alto, a high-speed rail system between Toronto and Quebec City, will transform our economy – drastically shortening commute times for millions of Canadians, turbocharging economic growth, creating thousands of good-paying jobs, improving productivity, and reducing emissions.

“Montreal to Toronto in three hours – you can’t beat that,” Trudeau added.

The move is expected to provide 50,000-plus jobs over 10 years, resulting in a sustained 1.1 per cent increase in Canada’s GDP. The new high-speed rail will also help Canada reduce its emissions and meet its climate targets, the federal government said.

“It will promote growth in regional economies and reduce emissions at the same time. It’s a nation-building project we can all be proud of,” said Anand.

With files from The Canadian Press