The next step in creating a high speed rail line that will link Toronto, Kitchener, London, and Windsor will be taken in the new year.
The Ontario government announced Friday morning that an integrated environmental assessment of the project will begin in early 2015.
The province says the next step will involve determining the most appropriate route for the rail line, looking at state-of-the-art technology, and evaluating the impact the project will have on ecosystems along the route.
The environmental assessment will involve municipal and business groups, as well as First Nation communities.
"I'm delighted our government is one step closer to bringing high-speed rail to Windsor, London, Kitchener-Waterloo, and Toronto," says Deb Matthews, deputy premier and MPP for London North Centre. "High-speed rail would be a great benefit to our community and would be a tremendous economic boost to southwestern Ontario."
The government announced in April a $29-billion transportation plan that included high speed rail. It's expected the plan will take ten years to come to fruition.
When it is finished, passengers could take a 320 km/hr train from London to downtown Toronto that would arrive at its destination in 71 minutes. The trains would offer 28 daily trips in each direction. It's estimated the trains would take approximately 20,000 vehicles off Hwy. 401 every day.
When he announced the plan in a speech in London in April, then-Transportation Minister Glen Murray said preliminary numbers show the fare from London to Toronto would be about $40 one way, but he said there would be opportunity for cheaper tickets in advance.
"This is fantastic news for London," says London Mayor Matt Brown. "High speed rail will benefit many vital economic sectors in London. We look forward to working with the province on this initiative."