First segment of high-speed rail project to connect Montreal and Ottawa

A Via Rail train is seen on tracks in Dorval, Que., as it heads out of Montreal on Friday, May 23, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi (Christinne Muschi)

MONTREAL — The first segment of the federal government’s proposed high-speed rail project will connect Montreal and Ottawa, acting as a test case for a multibillion-dollar infrastructure project intended to transform rail travel in Canada’s most densely populated region.

Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon said Friday that connecting Ontario and Quebec was the “logical” first step for the planned 1,000-kilometre rail network, which would see trains travelling between Toronto and Quebec City at speeds of up to 300 kilometres per hour. Construction is expected to begin in 2029.

“This segment represents a unique opportunity to connect two provinces and quickly generate benefits for travellers, communities and the economy,” MacKinnon told reporters in Gatineau, Que.

The high-speed rail project was first announced by then-prime minister Justin Trudeau in February. If completed, it could take passengers from Toronto to Montreal on dedicated tracks in less than three hours. The trip from Ottawa to Montreal is estimated to take slightly less than an hour.

Prime Minister Mark Carney announced in September the government’s new major projects office would speed up engineering and regulatory work on the railway to get construction underway within four years.

MacKinnon said the roughly 200-kilometre stretch between Montreal and Ottawa is “relatively short and straight,” and will allow teams in both provinces to start building the expertise needed for the rest of the project.

It would include a stop in Laval, Que., an off-island suburb north of Montreal.

The exact route of the rail line has not yet been determined. Alto, the Crown corporation responsible for the project, will launch a three-month public consultation in January.

Ultimately, the network is expected to extend west to Toronto, through Peterborough, Ont., and east to Quebec City, through Trois-Rivières, Que. Alto CEO Martin Imbleau said work will begin on those segments during the construction of the first leg.

“We are talking about a generational investment that will shape the Canadian economy for decades to come and will create lasting benefits,” MacKinnon said, citing estimates the project could create more than 50,000 jobs during construction and contribute up to $35 billion to Canada’s GDP.

Alto estimates the whole project could cost $60 billion to $90 billion. Imbleau declined Friday to say how much the first segment might cost, but he insisted tickets to ride the high-speed trains would be affordable.

The federal government has not made a final decision approving funding for the entire rail line. In February, Trudeau announced Ottawa had awarded a $3.9-billion contract to a consortium called Cadence to design the project.

Alto, previously called VIA HFR, had already identified the Ottawa-Montreal leg as the preferred first segment of the rail line more than a year ago, according to documents obtained by The Canadian Press in response to an access-to-information request.

But according to an August 2024 email from a Transport Canada official, the Crown corporation advised against making that public during the official announcement of the high-speed rail project, which took place in February.

“We want all the municipalities/mayors along the corridor to be on board, and not express any sort of disappointment,” the email says.

In a statement Friday, Conservative transport critic Dan Albas said the high-speed project “is not proceeding at anything resembling high speed.”

“Today the Liberals are giving themselves a blank cheque for a taxpayer-backed rail line with no price tag that will only benefit Liberal insiders,” he said.

Paul Langan, founder of advocacy group High-Speed Rail Canada, said it makes sense to start with the Ottawa-Montreal segment, which he said is the easiest part of the route. “This is a very smart decision to get this going and have a tangible result within a decade,” he said.

Getting the first leg built would be a big win in a country that still sees high-speed rail as “futuristic,” he said.

“I am optimistic, for the first time in a long time, that it’s going to happen.”

Maura Forrest, The Canadian Press