CANADA: The Ontario government has reached an agreement-in-principle to purchase land from freight railway Canadian National to enable it to construct dedicated tracks for GO Transit passenger train services on the route between Toronto and Kitchener.
The government is to purchase 20·9 km of land within CN’s Halton subdivision, enabling it to build infrastructure between Bramalea and Kitchener. The Kitchener Extension Project includes 40 km of track, re-alignments, signal upgrades, bridge work and platform expansion.
‘Today, we’re taking two pivotal steps towards delivering two-way, all-day GO train service between Kitchener and Toronto’, said Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria on October 16. ‘Our government is delivering the largest transit expansion in North America to tackle gridlock, keep workers on the job and support economic growth.’
Mayor of Kitchener Berry Vrbanovic said the project would ‘reduce commute times and unlock new opportunities for economic growth, job creation and quality of life for our residents.’
Mark Grubbs, VP Safety & Environment at CN, said ‘by enabling the province to move forward with the Kitchener Extension Project, this transaction supports fast and reliable transit across the entire Kitchener corridor. CN remains committed to working closely with the province to ensure a smooth transfer of the line and commends Premier Ford and Minister Sarkaria for their leadership in making this agreement possible. This project reflects CN’s belief that the best path to growing passenger rail, commuter services in this instance, is through separate and dedicated infrastructure.’
Meanwhile, GO services on the Kitchener Line will be increased from November 23, with 18 additional weekend trips between Bramalea and Toronto Union to provide a train every 30 min. Four existing weekend trips will be extended from Mount Pleasant to provide weekend services to Kitchener.
