Alto is studying a Kingston stop on its planned Canadian high-speed rail network, while passenger advocates warn that poor integration with existing VIA Rail services could weaken the connection.

A VIA Rail locomotive and passenger train at Kingston station in Ontario.
A VIA Rail passenger train at Kingston station in 2023. Illustrative image; it does not show an Alto train or the proposed Alto station. Cropped to 16:9. Photo: Can Pac Swire / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 2.0.

Kingston enters the southern-route assessment

On June 22, Transport Minister Steven MacKinnon directed the federal Crown corporation⁠ to assess a southern route between Peterborough and Ottawa that could include Kingston and interconnect with VIA Rail, subject to technical feasibility and project requirements.

The instruction expanded the route study; it did not approve a station. Alto says it is evaluating⁠ construction costs, ridership, regional accessibility, technical feasibility, economic and social benefits, and the network’s long-term performance. Crystal Jongeward, Alto’s senior adviser of corporate communications, said the corporation was “rigorously analyzing this option.”

Federal estimates indicate that high-speed rail could reduce a Kingston–Toronto trip to approximately 90 minutes. A Kingston stop could also place up to 80 per cent of residents between Peterborough and Ottawa within a 25-minute drive of a rail station.

The wider Alto network is planned to cover approximately 1,000 km between Toronto and Québec City on dedicated, mainly electrified tracks. Trains are intended to operate at 300 km/h or more, with the project expected to cut travel times roughly in half.

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VIA Rail connection shapes the station debate

Transport Action Canada⁠ supports adding Kingston but argues that the Alto station should be co-located with existing VIA Rail services. The organization’s main concern is that the southern alignment under consideration could put a station about 25 to 30 minutes by road north of Kingston.

A remote site would leave passengers dependent on an additional road transfer and complicate journeys from communities served by VIA Rail along Lake Ontario. Transport Action therefore wants seamless coordination between the two networks rather than separate stations serving different corridors.

The advocacy group also called for direct Alto access to Montréal–Trudeau International Airport when the network opens and a later connection to Toronto Pearson International Airport. It wants central stations in Toronto, Montréal and Québec City and is asking the federal government to release Alto’s business case, including its assessment of existing rail-corridor alternatives.

A route decision will follow more analysis

Alto continues to compare northern and southern approaches between Peterborough and Ottawa. The company expects to provide more information after technical work and further consultation, while a more precise alignment is due in the fall.

Once a preferred alignment is identified, the project is expected to move into more detailed design and regulatory review, including the federal impact assessment process. The first section planned for construction remains the Ottawa–Montréal corridor.

For Kingston, the immediate change is inclusion in the formal route assessment. Whether the city receives an Alto stop—and where that station would sit—remains undecided.

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