Via HFR CEO learned from LRT projects for new high-speed rail line

The CEO of the Via Rail subsidiary spearheading plans for a rapid passenger train linking Toronto to Montreal through to Quebec City, says he is learning from rail projects like the TTC’s Eglinton Crosstown LRT.

“If we rush in early, this is (how) we create expectations that we cannot deliver,” Via HFR CEO Martin Imbleau told the Toronto Star in an exclusive interview ahead of speaking at the Toronto Region Board of Trade’s Transportation Symposium on Tuesday.

“The recipe for a big project like this is to be very patient on the long term, and very impatient on the short term — make decisions on a daily basis, but don’t precipitate things on the overall aspect.”

Development of the 1,000kilometre high-frequency rail, which Imbleau says will be the biggest public infrastructure project since the St. Lawrence Seaway, is in the early stages, but he expects it to be operational by the mid-2030s.

Once completed, the train is expected to transport millions of passengers along the Toronto-Quebec City corridor — where an estimated half of Canada’s population resides — with stops in Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa, Montreal, Trois-Rivières and Quebec City.

With Canada’s population expected to double in the next 25 years, services like the HFR would support the economy by connecting smaller cities to large urban centres.

“The ongoing shortage of housing unfortunately shows us the danger of not keeping up with the pace of our population growth,” Imbleau said in a speech shared with the Toronto Star before the symposium.

Part of the reason the service would be faster and more reliable than today’s passenger trains is because it will run on dedicated tracks, rather than sharing rail with trains carrying cargo.

Travel time between Toronto and Montreal is expected to be nearly halved from just under six hours to three-and-a-half hours.

Currently, three private sector groups made up of engineering consultants and infrastructure contractors are in the process of crafting proposals for co-development of the project.

Imbleau cited the high-speed TGV train connecting France with Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy and Spain as an example of a fast and reliable service that will inspire the HFR.