Final rail report due in March: Leal

By this time next year, the federal and provincial governments will have the information they need to make a decision on whether to move forward with the Peterborough-Toronto commuter rail service, Peterborough MPP Jeff Leal says.

“A final report is expected by March 2014,” Leal said, reading a statement from the Ministry of Transportation. “All the reports necessaryto make decisions should be tidied up by March 2014.”

The Shining Waters Railway feasibility study and preliminary engineering design report is in its final stages of development, Leal said.

Peterborough MP Dean Del Mastro, who spearheaded the push for the commuter rail service before handing the project over to the Shining Waters Railway Authority, said earlier this week that the preliminary engineering design study shows that the project can be done within the $300-million budget.

He said that other studies are underway, including an update of the ridership projections and a plan on how the PeterboroughToronto rail service would connect with the transportation network in Toronto.

Previous studies have projected that there would be 950 passengers in each direction with two trains to Toronto in the morning and two return trips in the evening, Monday to Friday plus reduced weekend services.

The federal government and province each committed as much as $150 million in July 2008 toward restoring the Havelock-Peterborough-Toronto commuter rail service.

Del Mastro unveiled the findings of his study in January 2011. He outlined his $233-million plan that included refurbishing the track, building or upgrading six train stations and platforms along the line, repairing bridges and buying rail cars.