QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Transport
High-Frequency Rail Service
October 27, 2022
Thank you, minister, for being here. I’m going to give you one more chance to talk about that great rail line that’s going in between Toronto and Quebec City. You have expressions of interest. Can you tell me which firms or partnerships have expressed interest in the project?
Also, just a couple of quick questions to clarify. First, is this double track all the way between Toronto and Quebec City? Second, how are level crossings dealt with in the proposal?
Senator, thank you for the question. As far as I know, more than 50 companies participated in the expression of interest. I stand corrected if that number is not accurate. I don’t have the names of these companies off the top of my head, but as I said earlier, Transport Canada was expected to release a summary of the input received through the expression of interest process. We’d be happy to share that with you, senator.
You’re also asking specific questions about the design and how it’s going to be built, questions that I think are still up for debate. I think it’s too early to answer many of these questions because there are still some final touches that need to be made. Some of them will be informed by the private partners and the discussions we’re going to have with local communities.
I don’t know yet, but I want to stress that safety, including rail crossing safety, and infrastructure investment will be critical elements of that project. We’ll be sensitive to the concerns and needs of local communities.
