CBC Kitchener and Transit Guru Slam London-Toronto High Speed Rail Study -Without Seeing the Study!

Recently CBC's Kitchener Andrea Bellemore and Toronto Transit Guru Steve Munro both slammed Minister Glen Murray and the Ontario Liberal plan to modernize passenger rail through London, Stratford, Kitchener, Toronto. CBC, MUNRO

Apparently the fact that neither Andrea nor Steve had seen the study, did not prevent these critics from tearing into the idea. The critics were also upset that the study was not available immediately.

Here is a reality check for Andrea and Steve. The 2000 VIAFast High Speed Rail Study is still not available uncensored for the public. High Speed Rail Canada has submitted Freedom of Information requests to try and get the complete study. The 2009 SNCF International High Speed Rail Study, funded by taxpayers, for the London-Toronto-Montreal-Quebec City corridor is still not released. High Speed Rail Canada had to release the EcoTrain 2009 Federal government High Speed Rail study because the Tories were trying to bury it. So having the study released within a few months of it being completed rarely happens, even it it was not an election.

It is no surprise to me that the critics are negative on the study. It is so easy to be negative and much harder to try and be positive and move Canada forward with modern passenger trains that other countries have had for over a half a century. I guess we will have to continue to reminisce about the good old days in 1976 when Canada actually had passenger trains (the Turbo Train) that routinely went over 200 km/h.