Study finds Quebec City-Windsor HSR feasible, but pricey

The feasibility study for a high-speed rail service in the Quebec City - Windsor Corridor in Quebec and Ontario, Canada, was conducted on behalf of Transport Canada, the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario and the Ministry of Transportation of Quebec by EcoTrain, a group of international consulting firms led by Dessau and comprising Deutsche Bahn International, KPMG, MMM Group, and Wilbur Smith Associates. The joint study included an assessment of high-speed train technologies; potential routings; traffic forecasts; financial and economic (cost-benefit) analyses. The study also evaluated socioeconomic, environmental and transportation system impacts of developing high speed rail. The study evaluated two technologies based on speeds of 200 kilometers per hour (124 mph) using diesel traction and 300 km/h (186 mph) using electric traction. It further identified potential routes to accommodate each of the 200 and 300 km/h (124 and 186 mph) technologies including stations at Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, Montreal, Ottawa, Kingston, Toronto, London and Windsor. The financial analysis considered a government financing case (wholly public) and a partly private sector-funded case (private sector). The total development costs in 2009 dollars for the full Quebec City - Windsor Corridor are estimated to be between $18.9 billion (US$18.5 billion) for the 200 km/h (124 mph) technology and $21.3 billion (S$20.86 billion) for the 300 km/h (186 mph) technology. Developing the section between Montreal-Ottawa-Toronto could cost between $9.1 (US$8.9 billion) for 200 km/h (124 mph) and $11 billion (US$10.77 billion) for 300 km/h (186 mph). The main findings from the financial analysis for both the public case and the private sector case for the full Quebec City - Windsor Corridor indicate that while the project could cover all operating costs, governments would need to contribute significantly to the project development cost and receive no financial return on investment. The economic analysis assessed the viability of the project and its contribution to the economy as a whole by taking into account non-financial costs and benefits, such as changes in atmospheric emissions, public safety improvements and impact of HSR on transportation operators within the corridor. From the point of view of the Canadian economy as a whole, the economic analysis showed that HSR between Quebec City and Windsor would not generate a positive net economic benefit. However, a project between Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto only could generate a positive net economic benefit at both 200 and 300 km/h (124 and 186 mph).