New Alto Study Highlights Tourism Potential of High-Speed Rail Connectivity
A newly released study commissioned by Alto explores the potential tourism and economic impacts of Canada's proposed high-speed rail network connecting Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa-Gatineau, Montréal, Trois-Rivières, and Québec City.
The report confirms the significance of the corridor to Canada's visitor economy. Collectively, these destinations attract more than 20% of Canada's domestic visitors and more than 40% of international visitors, generating over $31 billion in annual visitor spending, contributing more than $33 billion to GDP, and supporting more than 377,000 jobs. Under a medium coordination scenario, the study estimates that enhanced rail connectivity could contribute approximately $1 billion in additional annual GDP and support more than 11,500 additional jobs.
For Ontario's tourism industry, the report reinforces a key principle: transportation infrastructure is far more than a mobility issue, it is a tourism growth issue.
One of the central findings of Forward Motion: A Strategic Playbook for Ontario's Tourism Industry was that stronger interregional transportation connectivity is essential to unlocking multi-destination travel, dispersing visitors beyond major gateways, supporting regional tourism economies, and encouraging longer stays and higher visitor spending. Transportation Infrastructure was identified as one of the strategy's six foundational pillars because connectivity is often the determining factor in whether visitors explore one destination or several.
The Alto report provides compelling evidence to support that thinking.
Importantly, the study also concludes that infrastructure investment alone is not enough. The greatest tourism benefits are projected to occur when improved transportation is paired with coordinated destination development, tourism marketing, visitor experience planning, strong last-mile connections, and collaboration among destinations and tourism partners.
This finding aligns closely with several pillars of Forward Motion, including Transportation Infrastructure, Product Development & Capacity Building, and Collaboration & Governance. Together, these priorities recognize that Ontario's long-term tourism competitiveness depends not only on moving people more efficiently, but on ensuring communities are prepared to capture and maximize the economic benefits that improved connectivity can create.
Recognizing the Importance of Continued Consultation
Major infrastructure projects inevitably involve a range of local and regional considerations. Across the proposed corridor, communities continue to discuss issues including station locations, route alignments, local transportation integration, environmental impacts, community planning considerations, and implications for tourism businesses and attractions
While these discussions will continue, the Alto study provides an important contribution by quantifying the broader economic opportunity associated with enhanced interregional connectivity. It offers a valuable evidence base that can help inform future consultation and decision-making while ensuring tourism considerations remain part of the conversation.
Continuing the Conversation at the Ontario Tourism Summit
TIAO looks forward to continuing this discussion with industry partners, transportation stakeholders, destination organizations, and government representatives as the project evolves.
As part of that conversation, TIAO is planning a dedicated session alongside the Ontario Tourism Summit this October featuring representatives from Alto. The session will provide an opportunity for destinations, operators, municipalities, and sector leaders to share perspectives on how enhanced connectivity can best support tourism growth across the province.
We encourage members to review the report and begin considering what improved connectivity could mean for visitor growth, destination development, regional collaboration, and the future of Ontario's visitor economy.