Eastern Ontario politicians raise concerns with costs, potential land use for Alto high-speed line

Alto, also known as the Toronto–Quebec City High-Speed Rail Network in a rendering (image: Alto)

Eastern Ontario politicians are jumping onboard the opposition train to the proposed high-speed rail project connecting Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Quebec City, raising concerns about the cost, the possible route and the future of land in the area.

Alto is currently studying the seven stop, 1,000 kilometre proposed high-speed rail line that would connect Toronto and Quebec City, with stops in Peterborough, Ottawa, Laval, Montreal and Trois-Rivières. The Crown corporation is looking at two routes connecting Toronto and Ottawa, with a southern route and a northern route.

In a speech in the House of Commons, Lanark-Frontenac Conservative MP Scott Reid raised concerns about the possible expropriation of land, the proposed route for the high-speed rail line, and the estimated $90 billion price tag.

“This mind-blowingly expensive project would destroy lives, ruin property rights and ruin communities that I represent,” Reid said on Thursday.

Reid warned the proposed high-speed rail line would “significantly affect property values, landlock properties that can no longer be accessed with ease, properties where formerly people could get to them by simply crossing and driving down the road, where now the road is bisected.”

Leeds-Grenville-Thousand Islands Rideau Lakes MPP Steve Clark is opposing the proposed southern route for the Toronto-Ottawa line, which stretches down near Kingston and Brockville.

“I have heard from residents in the communities I represent who would be directly affected by the proposed southern route for the Alto high-speed rail project,” Clark said in a statement on Friday.

“I share their serious concerns about the harm it would cause to property owners, farms, sensitive environmental habitat, world-renowned heritage areas, and emergency service response. At the same time, proponents have not demonstrated what tangible benefits this route would bring to our region.”

Eastern Ontario municipal politicians and residents have raised concerns about the proposed route for the high-speed rail line and the potential impacts on farms in the region.

On Wednesday, the United Counties of Prescott and Russell voted to create a steering committee to develop the region’s position and strategy for the Alto high-speed rail line. The motion notes the local municipalities and the United Counties of Prescott and Russell don’t have a “uniform, consistent, or coordinated approach” for participating in the consultation process.

The new steering committee will develop policy recommendations and identify risks, challenges and opportunities associated with the project.

“It’s a really complicated issue when you try to get eight municipalities who are very, very different to try to tackle a project of his magnitude,” Clarence-Rockland Mayor Mario Zanth told Newstalk 580 CFRA’s Ottawa at Work.

“The federal government has been very clear that this project is going ahead. There are a lot of people who are wishing that it cannot; there are some citizens that will mobilize to try to put a stop to the train. However, I prefer to just get ready and plan for the inevitability of this thing coming.”

Zanth concedes “nobody wants” the Alto train, adding the train can’t go through small towns and risks “removing” the livelihood of farmers if land is expropriated.

“There’s a lot of conversations to be had,” Zanth said, adding the municipalities need to be ready for when the government begins environmental assessments.

The mayor says it has been a “frustrating” process so far for municipalities.

“There are a lot of questions we don’t have answers to,” Zanth said. “Alto is not providing any information that is needed to be able to put some context here.”

Last week, Kingston council voted 9 to 2 to support a motion from Mayor Bryan Paterson calling on the federal government to explore a stop in Kingston on the route.

The motion noted a stop in Kingston would “contribute to Alto’s mandate of supporting strong ridership demand.” It added that if there were no station in Kingston, Council “formally opposes the creation of the Alto Southern Route that would effectively bypass Kingston.”

Reid says the federal government does “not have the money” to spend the $60 billion to $90 billion on what he calls an “insane project.”

“I suspect that if anything does get built, it will be the Ottawa to Montreal part, at which point the low ridership would show that the whole thing was a catastrophe and we would stop halfway through, much like we did with the Mirabel airport,” Reid said in the House of Commons.

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