For this to work, we need electrified rail, something that Metrolinx has been reluctant to build even when they had the head start to do so (and when they were urged to by this group of concerned citizens.) Unless Mr. Murray is willing to do this, what he wants won't really be happening.
Toronto - London | High Speed Rail | PROPOSED
Thought this was interesting. When discussing the Kitchener AD2W project here Glen Murray, Ontario's Transportation minister, states that they would like to see the trains run at "a couple hundred kilometers an hour". could this be the closest thing Canada will get to HSR? it would certainly be the first time trains travel at over 200km/h.
Between Brampton and Toronto the corridor is currently being rebuilt to 90mph (145km/h) standards, with a 70 mph section through the Weston Tunnel.
That is roughly 1/2 the trip, but the section from Mount Pleasant to Kitchener could very easily be 200km/h. This wouldn't be true HSR so to speak, but would be sort of a "mid level" roughly equivalent to what the US is doing around Chicago right now. 1 hour travel times running semi express between Toronto and Kitchener is very possible.
Murray also seems intent on starting some major expansions on regional rail in the province, possibly with some cooperation with VIA."we've then got to upgrade that track so if you want higher speed trains we've got to put concrete ties, we've got to upgrade the quality of the rail because eventually we don’t want sixty mile [an hour trains]."
"We need trains that are running a couple hundred kilometres an hour, that’s our goal with regional rail, so you’re talking about the kinds of rapid rail systems that you see in that."
Between Brampton and Toronto the corridor is currently being rebuilt to 90mph (145km/h) standards, with a 70 mph section through the Weston Tunnel.
That is roughly 1/2 the trip, but the section from Mount Pleasant to Kitchener could very easily be 200km/h. This wouldn't be true HSR so to speak, but would be sort of a "mid level" roughly equivalent to what the US is doing around Chicago right now. 1 hour travel times running semi express between Toronto and Kitchener is very possible.
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Could the thread title be changed to:
Toronto - London | High Speed Rail | PROPOSED
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Quick stats:
71 minutes London - Toronto (compare to 130 today on the fastest VIA train)
~45 minutes from Toronto to Kitchener
trains every 30 minutes
6 million annual passengers
around $40 from Toronto to London
Environmental assessment to begin in the fall, design completed with construction starting in around 3 years.
Completion 8-10 years from now.
Toronto - London | High Speed Rail | PROPOSED
http://www.am980.ca/2014/04/30/transport-minister-announces-start-of-assessment-phase-for-london-toronto-high-speed-rail-line/London, Ontario, Canada / (CFPL AM) AM 980
Jacquelyn LeBel
April 30, 2014 12:57 pm
The Ontario Liberals are fleshing out plans to introduce high-speed rail to London.
At a news conference Wednesday afternoon at the Western Fair District, Transportation Minister Glen Murray announced the government plans to finalize the business case and begin assessment as soon as this fall.
The assessment phase would last three to four years and if approved, construction would take roughly the same time period.
According to Murray, by 2025 the rail line would attract 6 million passengers per year and would take about 20,000 cars off the 401 each day.
A one-way ticket from London to downtown Toronto would likely cost about $40, Murray said.
The trains would run between London and Toronto with stops in Kitchener-Waterloo and at Pearson International Airport and would run on the half hour. In all, it would take a train 71 minutes to get from downtown London to downtown Toronto at a speed of about 320km/hr.
Premier Kathleen Wynne’s $29 billion dollar transportation masterplan would include spending the next decade building the infrastructure needed to provide all-day rail service between each city.
Quick stats:
71 minutes London - Toronto (compare to 130 today on the fastest VIA train)
~45 minutes from Toronto to Kitchener
trains every 30 minutes
6 million annual passengers
around $40 from Toronto to London
Environmental assessment to begin in the fall, design completed with construction starting in around 3 years.
Completion 8-10 years from now.
^^ What's going to happen then to the Union Pearson Express now that the HSR is planned to connect downtown to the airport?
it would still exist, This wouldn't be aimed at passengers trying to make that trip. The fact that the UPX uses 15 minute frequencies means that it will be more competitive in terms of convenience, and goes directly to the terminal unlike the HSR which would probably only stop on the rail corridor and have a lengthy Link train ride into the airport. The Pearson stop on the HSR line would be designed for people coming from London and Kitchener.
For those coming from London or Kitchener heading to Pearson looking to use UPX they'd have to go to Weston and then double-back to the airport. Meanwhile, the Union Pearson link is a one-seat trip only if you are headed to or coming from Terminal 1. A ride on LINK is required for access to Terminal 3. Rather than the dedicated rail line I would have preferred an upgraded Malton station which GO, VIA and whoever operates this high-speed corridor to use and then transfer to LINK/peoplemover system connecting to both terminals.it would still exist, This wouldn't be aimed at passengers trying to make that trip. The fact that the UPX uses 15 minute frequencies means that it will be more competitive in terms of convenience, and goes directly to the terminal unlike the HSR which would probably only stop on the rail corridor and have a lengthy Link train ride into the airport. The Pearson stop on the HSR line would be designed for people coming from London and Kitchener.
You would then have local and possibly semi-express run by GO and express run by VIA/HSR operator with corresponding price points. Then turn Malton into a regional transit terminal with GO, TTC, MiWay, Brampton Transit and YRT serving the terminal. You also get access to the wider region with the GO and VIA service connections. You could probably stagger the trips so that a train leaves Union and Malton every 15 minutes.
Done. Thanks for posting this. This is the most promising news on the HSR front that I've seen thus far. I'd obviously prefer real HSR comparable to that proposed red line in the map above, but at this point I'll take it. It's not HSR, but a huge improvement over what we currently have.Could the thread title be changed to:
Toronto - London | High Speed Rail | PROPOSED
How is 320km/h rail not HSR? It's not "perfect" HSR sure, but this is the best solution for the corridor anyway. You can't just skip Kitchener, it's chock full of HSR demographic riders and is growing extremely quickly. (Easily the strongest economy in the province right now) the costs of making it run 320km/h through Toronto wouldn't be worth the 5 minutes it saves anyway as well. This is exactly what I expected., and perfect for a first phase. Once people in this country get a glimpse of what is possible in terms of HSR they will do nothing but glamour for more.
I do consider 320km/h HSR, but isn't the top speed proposed on this run 200km/h?
nope. 320km/h. When I first made this thread Murray was still being very vague about it and all we knew is that it would be at least 200km/h, with the announcement on Wednesday we now know that this baby will run at 320km/h, provided it can actually get built of course.
That makes all the difference. So those run times of 71 minutes between London and Pearson are assuming top speeds of 320km/h?
Sounds to good to be true. Should be interesting to watch over the next few years. How will the upcoming elections affect something like this? Could it just as easily be scraped with subsequent changes in governments? I suppose it could?
And one more thought, does this say anything about how the province views Hamilton? It would appear that it is no longer being viewed as a priority in a regional context.
And one more thought, does this say anything about how the province views Hamilton? It would appear that it is no longer being viewed as a priority in a regional context.
Hamilton is better served by an urban regional rail setup, which is what the plans are. The Province wants to extend the Lakeshore GO line to Hamilton as well as build the Hamilton LRT.Sounds to good to be true. Should be interesting to watch over the next few years. How will the upcoming elections affect something like this? Could it just as easily be scraped with subsequent changes in governments? I suppose it could?
And one more thought, does this say anything about how the province views Hamilton? It would appear that it is no longer being viewed as a priority in a regional context.
This project will likely get tossed unless the Liberals win. If they win, it stands to see another day.
well that project would be very interesting, lately i have been feeling like London have lots of potential but investors just don't look its way. even so, last time i checked they had a fairly decent airport, i rather they encourage travellers from/to Kitchener to use it instead of Pearson. it could pass through Mississauga's core instead. i don't think it is any good for Toronto to keep centralizing cultural development. big bulky dense downtown is an outdated concept. we should become conscious of that and develop many strong cores in the province
I do think Toronto eventually needs 2 or 3 more big train stations to compliment Union. Not everything needs to or should funnel through one central station. Most big cities have a few big rail hubs to handle the load. Mississauga is too far out, but I'd like to see a big train station developed to the north (Summerhill or St. Clair), one to the west (Dundas West), and one to the east (Main Street).
Toronto to Montreal high speed rail would be amazing.
I do think Toronto eventually needs a 2 or 3 more big train stations to compliment Union. Not everything needs to or should funnel through one central station. Most big cities have a few big rail hubs to handle the load. Mississauga is too far out, but I'd like to see a big train station developed to the north (Summerhill or St. Clair), one to the west (Dundas West), and one to the east (Main Street).
I would like to see the Milton & Richmond Hill GO lines routed through Summerhill, with development being intensified there and more stations placed along the route (Kingsway, Junction, Dufferin, Dupont Station, Summerhill, Thorncliffe, Don Mills). Main and Dundas West wouldn't be very good locations for terminals though. They're too far from the core and not destinations in and of themselves, so traffic would just be pushed onto the subways instead. These areas would be good candidates for high-density, commercial, Yonge & Eglinton/NYCC-type redevelopment, but even then it wouldn't really make sense to terminate trains there. It would be better to construct a new station at the Bathurst Yard, with the Kitchener & Barrie lines running out of there, leaving Union to accommodate the Lakeshore lines, Lincolnville line, Pearson Express, and VIA trains.
So Summerhill to the north of downtown, Bathurst Yard to the west of downtown; what about on the east side of downtown? Where is Bathurst Yard exactly?
routing trains through to Summerhill would be beyond stupid, it would do nothing but force a transfer onto the overloaded Yonge line.
I would vastly prefer an expanded Union station, its not really that busy by rail station standards right now anyway.
I would vastly prefer an expanded Union station, its not really that busy by rail station standards right now anyway.
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