{"id":4878,"date":"2026-02-19T05:00:57","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T05:00:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/?p=4878"},"modified":"2026-03-15T13:18:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-15T13:18:12","slug":"4878-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/4878-2\/","title":{"rendered":"High Speed Rail Concerns &#8211; public consultation deadline  extended to April 24."},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"791\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-791x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4876\" srcset=\"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-791x1024.jpg 791w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-768x994.jpg 768w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-1187x1536.jpg 1187w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-1583x2048.jpg 1583w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1-495x640.jpg 495w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_1.jpg 1700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 791px) 100vw, 791px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"791\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-791x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-4877\" srcset=\"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-791x1024.jpg 791w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-232x300.jpg 232w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-768x994.jpg 768w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-1187x1536.jpg 1187w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-1583x2048.jpg 1583w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2-495x640.jpg 495w, https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Events_HighSpeedRail_Mar29_2.jpg 1700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 791px) 100vw, 791px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Dear Friends of the Salmon River,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You may have heard that ALTO (the federal agency leading Canada&#8217;s high-speed rail initiative) is actively considering a southern route for a new high-speed rail corridor through our region. This proposal has significant implications for the lands, rivers, and communities we care about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>High-speed rail, done well, can be a real environmental benefit, offsetting cars and planes. Look at high-speed trains in Japan and Europe. They benefit from:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Much shorter distances between urban centres<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Existing, electrified rail systems<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Deep integration with international (high-speed services like Eurostar), intercity, and local networks<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Our geography, however, is very different. The southern route raises serious concerns about environmental protection and mitigation for sensitive local lands and watersheds. Municipal opposition is growing: Stone Mills Township has now joined Rideau Lakes and South Frontenac in formally opposing the southern route.See attached poster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Our best path forward may be to re-evaluate use of the 401 corridor, with upgrades to Medium Speed Rail, to achieve reliable, frequent service at 160 to 200 km\/h, together with intercity spur lines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The only southern route local public consultation is this Wednesday. February 18th. This&nbsp;is your chance to be heard in person:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>1.&nbsp;<strong>Complete the online survey<\/strong>:&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/en.consultation.altotrain.ca\/shaping-the-canada-of-tomorrow-with-high-speed-rail\/surveys\/consultation-questionnaire\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">https:\/\/en.consultation.altotrain.ca\/shaping-the-canada-of-tomorrow-with-high-speed-rail\/surveys\/consultation-questionnaire<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>2.&nbsp;<strong>Provide feedback on the interactive map:&nbsp;<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.consultation.altotrain.ca\/shaping-the-canada-of-tomorrow-with-high-speed-rail\/places\/interact-map\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">https:\/\/en.consultation.altotrain.ca\/shaping-the-canada-of-tomorrow-with-high-speed-rail\/places\/interact-map<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>3.&nbsp;<strong>Submit a written brief:&nbsp;<\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/en.consultation.altotrain.ca\/shaping-the-canada-of-tomorrow-with-high-speed-rail\/surveys\/upload-brief\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">https:\/\/en.consultation.altotrain.ca\/shaping-the-canada-of-tomorrow-with-high-speed-rail\/surveys\/upload-brief<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>4.&nbsp;<strong>Join the conversations on Facebook<\/strong>&nbsp;in the groups: &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/945005137854442\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Alto train southern route discussion forum<\/a>&#8221; and &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/savesouthfrontenac\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Save South Frontenac: No high-speed train in the southern corridor<\/a>&#8220;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is an important moment. The decisions being made now will shape this landscape for generations.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Friends of the Salmon River<br><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cheers&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Susan Moore,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.friendsofsalmonriver.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Friends of Salmon River<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lastewardship.ca\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Lennox &amp; Addington Stewardship Council<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-medium-font-size\"><strong><mark style=\"background-color:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0)\" class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-red-color\">NOTE: the public consultation deadline has been extended to April 24.  <\/mark><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dear Friends of the Salmon River, You may have heard that ALTO (the federal agency leading Canada&#8217;s high-speed rail initiative) is actively considering a southern route for a new high-speed rail corridor through our region. This proposal has significant implications for the lands, rivers,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11,4,9,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4878","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-natural-areas","category-nature-bits","category-opportunities","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4878","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4878"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4878\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4925,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4878\/revisions\/4925"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4878"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4878"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturestuff.net\/web\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4878"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}