Infrastructure bank gives Via $55M for work on rail project
OTTAWA Via Rail is getting $71 million in federal cash — some through Transport Canada and some from an infrastructure financing agency — to tackle the last few details needed to make the case that its high-frequency rail proposal should get private-sector backing.
The head of the financing agency says there is “strong interest” from private investors to kick in for dedicated rail lines aimed at increasing the frequency and speed of trips and ensure Via’s trains will no longer have to yield to freight trains on borrowed tracks.
But Via must first make the case that the project is worth pursuing, which is where the money announced Tuesday comes in. Federal coffers will fund work to make sure that Via trains can seamlessly move between any new dedicated tracks and local transit systems in Montreal and Toronto.
For Montreal, that includes running Via trains along the electric-rail system under construction, known best by its French acronym R.E.M., which the Canada Infrastructure Bank is also financing.
The infrastructure-bank money, totalling $55 million, will be largely used for environmental assessment, consultations with Indigenous communities, and a technical and financial review to help the government make a final funding decision. The rest of the money, $16 million, is coming from Transport Canada.
If the rail lines are built, passenger routes would connect, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City along discontinued and lesser-used tracks. Connections would also be made to Peterborough, Ont., and Dorion and Trois-Rivières in Quebec.
The proposal would likely cost $4 billion or more and Via Rail is looking at ways to bring in private cash to supplement public dollars.
“It is seen as an option. We have participated in a round of market-sounding with potential investors who have shown strong interest,” said Pierre Lavallee, chief executive of the Canada Infrastructure Bank.
“There’s interest and there’s a very real need for more detailed information, which is what we’re going to be developing,” he said. “We’re obviously working in that direction and we’re hopeful it all works out to develop a great project for Canadians.”