London tech sector welcomes proposed high-speed rail service

LONDON, ONT. A proposed highspeed rail system running from Windsor to Toronto will be a boon for London’s tech sector, industry insiders say.

Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne announced last week in London that a $15-million environmental assessment is beginning on the project expected to be completed by 2031.

The news has the head of an umbrella group that represents London technology businesses championing the rail system as key to attracting much-needed talent to the city’s growing tech sector.

“We have to be competitive,” said TechAlliance chief executive Marilyn Sinclair. “We don’t want to close any doors.”

The $20-billion investment will shorten the commute to 72 minutes between London and Toronto — a city that boasts more than onethird of Canada’s technology jobs — with that section scheduled to be completed by 2025.

The London-to-Windsor portion of the project is to be completed by 2031. An environmental assessment will be done in about four years, with the design study happening at the same time, and construction beginning afterward.

The trip from the Forest City to Kitchener-Waterloo, another city with a thriving tech sector and head of Google’s Canadian engineering headquarters, will be shaved to an estimated 25 minutes, less time than it takes to drive across London during rush hour.

Though proponents have championed the ability of the system with trains running at 250 km/h to allow Londoners to work in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Sinclair said high-speed rail also will make London’s growing tech sector more appealing to GTA residents who want to stay put.

“There’s some people who may not want to move but would love to have a job in London,” she said, adding that cutting time-consuming commute times would also boost productivity.

Andrew Schiestel, president of tbk Creative, calls high-speed rail a “win-win” for the technology industry that employs more than 9,000 people in London.

“There is a shortage of very good programmers in the country, in general, so anything we can do to attract more, that’s great,” said Schiestel, whose web design and digital marketing agency has grown to a staff of 20 since launching in 2008.

Noting that many 20-somethings are drawn to Toronto for its youth-friendly culture and vibrant nightlife, Schiestel said the shortened commute to London would make it more appealing as a destination for work.

High-speed rail linking Southwestern Ontario to Toronto has been floated for decades.

Paul Langlan of High Speed Rail Canada, a national advocacy group, said the federal government needs to support the project.

Langlan also wants to see companies outside Canada, not just Bombardier, be considered for the project.