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High Speed Rail: London - Kitchener-Waterloo - Pearson Airport - Toronto

Wow, 320 km/h trains in Canada. At this rate I just hope the federal liberals get in (or Harper stops being stingy but that's not about to happen) and we can get funding flowing for the same kind of service on the Windsor-QC corridor.

Side note, does anyone know if Murray has confirmed that the 15 minute GO service will be reaching to the end of each line? It's always possible that we'll still end up with a lower (30 min or maybe hourly) service level to stations that maybe couldn't justify 15 min service, like Stouffville for example. Though I'd be perfectly happy with 15 min to Stouffville as well, that may become a cost saving measure.
 
MrsNesbitt said:
Wow, 320 km/h trains in Canada. At this rate I just hope the federal liberals get in (or Harper stops being stingy but that's not about to happen) and we can get funding flowing for the same kind of service on the Windsor-QC corridor.

Side note, does anyone know if Murray has confirmed that the 15 minute GO service will be reaching to the end of each line? It's always possible that we'll still end up with a lower (30 min or maybe hourly) service level to stations that maybe couldn't justify 15 min service, like Stouffville for example. Though I'd be perfectly happy with 15 min to Stouffville as well, that may become a cost saving measure.
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On Twitter he just keeps saying "ALL LINES" and "Everywhere" .....he hasn't actually said "to the end of all lines" but last night he did tweet that Niagara was included in the 15 minute service so it is hard to imagine that the end of any other line would be deemed outside of the service area.
 
Not sure I believe many of his statements on twitter either. This conversation is contradictory:

Twitter User: Over 21,000 daily commuter trips from #Niagara. #Grimsby #Lincoln #WestLincoln = over 10,000 of them
Glen Murray: Niagara will be getting 15min Regional Express Rail. See today's announcement. Completed with in 10 yrs.
Twitter User: Wynne said GO-owned tracks only - still valid? Or will GO be buying tracks from Burlington to Niagara Falls?
Glen Murray: No. All tracks we own or lease
 
ShonTron said:
I don't believe the 320 km/h speed; it'd have to be on a completely new alignment.
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No it wouldn't, at least not to Stratford. That alignment is as straight as an arrow for miles. It's probably the straightest alignment in the country. Just some speed restrictions. Even countries with high speed often only run it part way, and then run at conventional speeds.

It would require a lot of grade separations, a lot more track, and a LOT more money. I don't believe it either.

Murray often says bizarre things on Twitter that aren't true. He's claimed for example that they had never promised the Sheppard East LRT would be finished before 2020.
 
Either way you cut it, it would be a real boom for London.

The problem is that unless the trains are very fast it might not be any good to Londoners. The reality is that a standard London/Union express with some upgrades and express service would be very fast with far less capital expenditures. A stop at Kitchener and Pearson would certainly be beneficial for those going there but most aren't and are heading right into the city. A very fast train to via Kitchener would have a stop there and at Pearson which would greatly reduce it's speed and may not be any faster than an upgraded VIA London/Union express. It would also be far more beneficial for the remaining 650,000 Ontarians living west of London as it would not require a transfer at London but rather just a non-stop fast service once it hits London.

This may look pretty and certainly help connectivity to London and, more importantly, make for great ribbon cutting but this has not be well thought out and clearly was planned by someone who would get a nose bleed if they were to venture west of the 427.
 
ssiguy2 said:
Either way you cut it, it would be a real boom for London.

The problem is that unless the trains are very fast it might not be any good to Londoners. The reality is that a standard London/Union express with some upgrades and express service would be very fast with far less capital expenditures. A stop at Kitchener and Pearson would certainly be beneficial for those going there but most aren't and are heading right into the city. A very fast train to via Kitchener would have a stop there and at Pearson which would greatly reduce it's speed and may not be any faster than an upgraded VIA London/Union express. It would also be far more beneficial for the remaining 650,000 Ontarians living west of London as it would not require a transfer at London but rather just a non-stop fast service once it hits London.

This may look pretty and certainly help connectivity to London and, more importantly, make for great ribbon cutting but this has not be well thought out and clearly was planned by someone who would get a nose bleed if they were to venture west of the 427.
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sorry....not really getting what you are suggesting....it seems you might be saying that what we should be building is a high speed connection between London and Union with zero stops in between.
 
those two stops would add 5 minutes max to the service, and a ton of londoners coming into Toronto are going to Pearson anyway. as for "someone who never goes west of the 427", you are so far west last time I recalled that you are in BC.

Going past kitchener is silly, and aiport connections are standard for HSR systems. I don't see the problem here. This isn't to serve london and London only, its there to serve Kitchener as well.
 
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There could also be 1 or 2 trains a day that run nonstop from London to Pearson.

A stop in Kitchener won't be a big deal if the trains are going that fast anyway.
 
TOareaFan said:
sorry....not really getting what you are suggesting....it seems you might be saying that what we should be building is a high speed connection between London and Union with zero stops in between.
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I think he's referring to the alignment via Aldershot rather than through the airport and Kitchener, which VIA currently operates with a 2:10 running time. The route to London via Kitchener currently has a 3:30 running time.
 
The alignment via Aldershot is only 10km shorter than the Kitchener route.. but the Kitchener route is much straighter and doesn't run on heavily used freight tracks. It also doesn't hit Pearson airport or Kitchener. The reason that the VIA trains running through kitchener currently take so long is because of the substandard track, not because it is a really out of the way route.
 
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