A high-speed rail service project between Toronto and Quebec City concerned Skeena-Bulkley Valley MP Taylor Bachrach about the future of rail transport.
Unveiled on Wednesday, Alto would operate the 300 kilometere per hour line which would reduce travel times between the cities.
It would be developed in partnership with the transportation consortium Cadence.
“They’re doing this in a way that is essentially going to privatize rail service along that corridor, and that is going to have some pretty serious ramifications for VIA Rail,” Bachrach said.
He added the routes between those communities bring in 90 per cent of VIA Rail’s revenue which helps subsidize its more rural routes.
This includes the passenger train service between Prince Rupert and Jasper, running through the Bulkley Valley and Lakes District.
“[It] is one of those long-distance rural services that historically struggled with ridership and requires a subsidy from the rest of VIA Rail’s service to survive into the future,” Bachrach said.
He said VIA is working on creating new trains to replace those in operation on the line as they are some of the oldest ones still in use.
Bachrach supports there being a high-speed rail service but believes VIA should be the company operating it.
“The way that they’re going about it is the real challenge, essentially handing over passenger rail service to this consortium of big corporations so they can make private profits off it,” he said.
He adds since Greyhound shut down in Canada, rail transport has been the only form of public transport between communities.
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