The Ontario government is moving ahead with its plans for high-speed rail and it could prove to be an economic boon for London.
The line would connect Windsor, London, Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto and could see Londoners land in the Big Smoke in about an hour.
The province plans to invest $29 billion over 10 years in years in transit and transportation projects across Ontario.
The high-speed rail plan will include an environmental assessment and the province is also examining state-of-the-art transportation technology options and the best route.
It's not clear, however, what the final bill might be and when we can expect to hop on board.
"What we are doing now is we're really looking at the viability of it and looking at a whole bunch of questions that need to be answered before we could begin to put a price tag on it," says Deb Matthews, London North Centre MPP and deputy premier.
City planner John Fleming says the proposal puts pressure on London to significantly improve transit inside the city.
"You really can't have a situation where you get here from Toronto in 70 mintues or Waterloo in 30 minutes and then it takes another half hour to get to the university or a hospital or another employment node," he says.
The soon-to-be-approved London Plan calls for a commitment to a high-speed rail station downtown that would connect to a city-wide bus rapid transit system.
"Alignment and a seamless network is extremely important. If we are both making these kinds of investments then its important they work together for the people we represent," says Transportation Minister Steven Del Duca, in London to make the announcement.
The first step, the environmental assessment, will be guided by consultations in early 2015 with municipal and business groups, as well as with First Nation and Métis communities, weighing in.
Key business leaders and members of the local technology industry, such as Big Blue Bubble, Big Viking Games, Inner Geek Inc., are also involved in discussions.
