Good morning. Alto\u2019s high-speed rail line comes with big promises and even bigger challenges \u2013 more on that below, along with the latest on the Montreal shooting and Europe\u2019s record-breaking heat wave. But first:<\/p>\n
Today\u2019s headlinesOpen this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n The high-speed trains would run on new tracks \u2013 as opposed to these ones near Toronto’s Union Station.Fred Lum\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n InfrastructureTrack changes<\/p>\n Canada\u2019s first high-speed railway packs a lot of promises into a 45-second teaser video. According to Alto, the Crown corporation developing this project, the train between Toronto and Quebec City is \u201cthe solution we need for our country\u2019s economy.\u201d Once built, it will boost productivity and create national prosperity. It will improve access to housing and all manner of jobs. It will \u201cbring our lives and cities closer together.\u201d It will even advance reconciliation with Indigenous peoples.<\/p>\n But so far, Alto\u2019s fine print hasn\u2019t been as substantial<\/a> as its big-picture pitch. Actually, that\u2019s an understatement. Nearly a year after Ottawa\u2019s Major Projects Office added the high-speed plan to its list<\/a> of nation-building ventures to fast-track, details remain in short supply. Details like: What\u2019s the precise route of this 1,000-km rail line? How many stops will it involve? Where might the trains enter the cities? How often will they run? How many people will they carry? And just how much is this whole thing going to cost?<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what we do know. The trains are meant to run on new, grade-separated electrified tracks at up to 300 kilometres an hour, cutting the journey between Montreal and Toronto down to three hours. The trip currently takes five-and-a-half hours on Via Rail, provided the train manages to arrive on time, which rarely happens<\/a> anymore. Travelling from Ottawa to Montreal would take an hour, instead of more than two, while it\u2019d be two hours from Ottawa to Toronto, instead of almost five.<\/p>\n There will be three stops in Ontario and another four in Quebec \u2013 unless Alto tacks on a station in Kingston<\/a>, something Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon said this week is his \u201cstrong preference.\u201d That would divert the route farther south than Alto\u2019s initial proposal, which already has a fairly wide<\/a> distance range. The stops would also connect to existing transit and Via Rail services \u2013 but not at Gare du Palais in Quebec City, because its historic district is a logistical nightmare<\/a>, and probably not at Toronto\u2019s Union Station, given the space constraints. Alto has suggested some alternatives, but is yet to confirm where exactly the stations will go. <\/p>\n Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n A rendering from Alto of its high-speed rail line.Supplied<\/p>\n As for total construction costs, no official estimate has been released. Alto says the line is expected to require $60-billion to $90-billion \u2013 note that $30-billion margin of error \u2013 but it\u2019s a safe bet the final price tag will be higher still. An EU audit revealed<\/a> that lengthy delays and huge cost overruns were a hallmark of high-speed rail projects. Research by Bent Flyvbjerg, a Danish expert in global megaprojects, found those cost overruns average out to 39 per cent. He even coined<\/a> an iron law for monumental endeavours: \u201cOver budget, over time, over and over again.\u201d<\/p>\n Alto has been just as optimistic about the ridership on its rail line, expecting<\/a> 24 million annual passengers by 2055, and up to 43 million by the mid-2080s. (Via Rail moves roughly three million people today.) For a bit of perspective: The entire Eurostar network in western Europe carries<\/a> 20 million passengers annually. The Amtrak line that runs frequently between Boston and Washington, D.C. \u2013 an area with three times as many people as the Toronto-Quebec City corridor \u2013 topped out<\/a> at 3.1 million passengers last year.<\/p>\n That\u2019s not to say high-speed rail isn\u2019t a worthy ambition: Canada is the only G7 nation without this kind of line. Travelling by train in France, or Japan, or Italy is an absolute pleasure, and puts vastly more of the country within reach. The federal government has already committed $5-billion in planning expenses; it will decide in 2029 whether to go ahead with the project so work can start<\/a> between Montreal and Ottawa. Hopefully Alto will have laid out more details by then.<\/p>\n Montreal shooting\u2018Behind the uniform was an exceptional man.\u2019Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n The investigation into the shooting in Montreal, which killed three, is ongoing.Christopher Katsarov\/The Canadian Press<\/p>\n Tributes poured in yesterday for Mohamed Lamine Benredouane, a 34-year-old police constable, and Michel Mizrahi, a 68-year-old shop owner, both killed in a gun battle outside a Montreal hotel on Monday. Officials confirmed that the suspect, also deceased, is a 25-year-old from Alberta who seems to have been largely motivated<\/a> by incel ideology. Read more here about the shooting and its aftermath<\/a>. <\/p>\n The WrapWhat else we\u2019re following<\/p>\n At home: Union leaders, labour activities and lobbyists agree that, 15 months into his tenure as Prime Minister, Mark Carney shows a stark lack of interest<\/a> in worker issues. <\/p>\n Abroad: France registered its hottest day<\/a> on record \u2013 climbing to 44.3 C \u2013 as Europe swelters through a ferocious early-summer heat wave. <\/p>\n Soccer: Greg Bay leads the Canadian men\u2019s physio team \u2013 and he sprung into action when<\/a> Isma\u00ebl Kon\u00e9 broke his leg in the match against Qatar. <\/p>\n Cloth: The legacy of the 960-year-old Bayeux Tapestry is colliding with the realities<\/a> of a post-Brexit world.<\/p>\n More soccer: Nova Scotia\u2019s Jacob Shaffelburg has put Port Williams on the map<\/a> thanks to his World Cup performance.<\/p>\n