Southern Ontario High-Speed Rail Alternative

Made by Eric LombardiExploring a run for Ontario Liberal Party leader

Map Legend

Lines

Southern Ontario HSR

Greater Golden Horseshoe HSR

Alto (Federal)

Alto Alternate

Station Tiers

Core Hub

Major Hub

Regional

Alto Alternate Hub

Speed Assumptions

Design speed: 320–350 km/h

Rural230–250 km/h

Mixed180–220 km/h

Urban140–170 km/h

This is a map of a possible high-speed rail network for Southern Ontario. See how the region connects, how travel times change, and what a network like this could mean for how Ontario works.

Take this as a starting point for a conversation about what Ontario should build.

Example travel times under the proposed network. Average speeds reflect real operating conditions — not peak — and account for acceleration, deceleration, and dwell time at intermediate stops.

Route	Service	HSR Time	By Car (Typical)
Toronto → Niagara Falls	Standard	~48 min	90–120 min
Toronto → Kitchener	Standard	~38 min	90–120 min
Toronto → Kitchener	Express i	~26 min	90–120 min
Toronto → Windsor	Standard	~2h 00m	~4h
Toronto → Windsor	Express i	~1h 40m	~4h
Barrie → Hamilton	Standard	~50 min	~95–110 min
London → Pearson	Standard	~55 min	~2h
Kitchener → Hamilton	Standard	~18 min	~60–90 min
Oshawa → Hamilton	Standard	~44 min	~90–120 min
Oshawa → Kitchener	Standard	~65 min	~110–140 min

System Total

Total estimated capital cost: ~$97 billion — comparable to the 401 tunnel, with a fundamentally different outcome.

Component	Cost
Track & Infrastructure	~$91B
Stations	~$6B
Total	~$97B

Track Segments

Segment	Length	Avg Speed	Cost/km	Total
Windsor → Chatham	80 km	235 km/h	$70M	$5.6B
Chatham → London	100 km	240 km/h	$75M	$7.5B
London → Kitchener	110 km	245 km/h	$85M	$9.4B
Kitchener → Pearson	85 km	200 km/h	$105M	$8.9B
Pearson → Toronto	30 km	150 km/h	$170M	$5.1B
Toronto → Oshawa	65 km	160 km/h	$155M	$10.1B
Toronto → Hamilton	70 km	210 km/h	$135M	$9.5B
Hamilton → Niagara Falls	85 km	180 km/h	$115M	$9.8B
Kitchener → Hamilton	60 km	205 km/h	$100M	$6.0B
Pearson → Barrie	115 km	220 km/h	$95M	$10.9B
Pearson → Hamilton	65 km	190 km/h	$130M	$8.5B

Track Assumptions

Design speed 320–350 km/h, consistent with Project Alto specifications.
No extensive tunnelling assumed — the primary cost driver avoided.
All-in per-km cost includes guideway, electrification, signalling, land acquisition, design, and contingency.
Rural: $70–85M/km · Peri-urban: $95–115M/km · Urban approaches: $130–170M/km.
For reference, Project Alto is using $60–90M/km as its estimate; this network uses higher figures for conservative planning.

Stations

Station	Tier	Connections	Cost
Pearson	Core Hub	4	$1.5B
Hamilton	Core Hub	4	$1.0B
Toronto (Union / East Harbour)	Major Hub	3	$1.2B
Kitchener–Waterloo	Major Hub	3	$0.6B
Oshawa	Regional	2	$0.5B
London	Regional	2	$0.3B
Chatham	Regional	2	$0.2B
Windsor	Regional	1	$0.25B
Niagara Falls	Regional	1	$0.25B
Barrie	Regional	1	$0.25B
Total			~$6.1B

Station Cost Assumptions

All-in cost includes platforms, track works, concourse, vertical circulation, surface access (bus interface, drop-off), land acquisition, design, and contingency.
Simple stations: $200–250M — typical of efficient surface builds.
Regional nodes: $500–600M — larger interchange stations.
Major hubs: $700M–$1.5B — complex urban nodes with multi-modal integration.
Ontario costs sit above typical European/Japanese benchmarks but below high-cost outliers like California — consistent with conservative planning assumptions.