One of the recent route options presented by Alto, the crown corporation in charge of the rail project, includes a path that would go directly through South Frontenac Township. This has raised concerns among landowners and environmentalists in the area, who believe it’s not an appropriate plan.
On Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, the council of South Frontenac supported these worries by voting unanimously to reject Alto’s proposed Southern Ontario corridor. They argued that routing the train within Kingston city limits would be more sensible.
Proposed routes for Alto’s high-speed train. Map image via Mark Gerretsen on Facebook.
Mayor Ron Vandewal expressed concern that Kingston’s mayor, Bryan Paterson, might advocate for support of Alto’s southern proposal; however, he believes they share common ground.
“The south proposal was never on the agenda when it was proposed to this council in December,” Vandewal stated.
“All that the discussion was was the northern corridor… if there’s a southern route and it’s serving the larger municipality, which is the City of Kingston, it needs to go through the City of Kingston.”
The motion was prioritized at Tuesday night’s meeting, where many constituents voiced negative feedback about how it would impact their rural lifestyle and local environment.
The Frontenac Arch Biosphere Network mentioned on social media that they also received numerous concerns regarding potential effects on this UNESCO-protected site.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Vandewal noted that a southern option could restrict access to major roads and fragment land for some residents.
He added that planning a route through their Township wouldn’t benefit anyone in the region.
“There’s no economic benefit to South Frontenac other than to destroy the environment,” Vandewal said.
“They’re cutting places in half… it’ll be devastating for generations if this thing goes through here.”
Vandewal mentioned he heard from Paterson that unless a corridor services Kingston with a stop nearby, they won’t support this proposal either. A motion addressing this will be brought up at an upcoming council meeting.
As things stand now, while Alto’s southern route brings trains closer to Kingston, there isn’t any plan for a stop within Kingston itself. Stops are only planned for Ottawa, Peterborough, and Toronto along Ontario’s route.
Currently, residents in Kingston can use VIA Rail for train services; however, some regional offerings from VIA have faced uncertainty lately.
An email sent by Lanark-Frontenac MP Scott Reid to a constituent indicated that either high-speed rail option could lead to fewer riders on VIA Rail and potentially result in service cuts affecting Kingston and other southeastern Ontario towns.
“It is highly likely that the high-speed rail service would result in the end of the existing Via Rail service that passes through Kingston, Smiths Falls, and other centres along the existing Via Rail line,” Reid wrote in his email.
“The promoters of the Alto project may suggest otherwise but as a practical matter all commuters who are seeking to go from Montreal or Ottawa to Toronto will choose the faster Alto train and will thereby strip away at least three-quarters of Via’s passenger traffic.”
Reid points out in his email that this could make VIA “financially untenable” after already suffering considerable losses over recent years.
Alto mentioned plans for integrating VIA Rail services with their high-speed line eventually and suggested this “offers an opportunity to improve services on these existing rail routes so as to better address local needs.”
<پ<Alto described both options presented for their corridor: one northern route offering quicker travel times but requiring work in remote areas with sensitive ecosystems; whereas their southern option promises easier construction and operations overall.</پ
A public information session hosted by Alto is scheduled at Storrington Lions Club on Wednesday Feb. 18 2026.
The Mayor pointed out he told representatives from Alto that having this information session “is a little late,” expecting no change in community sentiment towards their proposal. Owen Fullerton is a Kingston-based Local Journalism Initiative (LJI) reporter with YGK News. The LJI is funded by Government Canada.
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Proposed routes for Alto’s high-speed train. Map image via Mark Gerretsen on Facebook.
Mayor Ron Vandewal expressed concern that Kingston’s mayor, Bryan Paterson, might advocate for support of Alto’s southern proposal; however, he believes they share common ground.
“The south proposal was never on the agenda when it was proposed to this council in December,” Vandewal stated.
“All that the discussion was was the northern corridor… if there’s a southern route and it’s serving the larger municipality, which is the City of Kingston, it needs to go through the City of Kingston.”
The motion was prioritized at Tuesday night’s meeting, where many constituents voiced negative feedback about how it would impact their rural lifestyle and local environment.
The Frontenac Arch Biosphere Network mentioned on social media that they also received numerous concerns regarding potential effects on this UNESCO-protected site.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Mayor Vandewal noted that a southern option could restrict access to major roads and fragment land for some residents.
He added that planning a route through their Township wouldn’t benefit anyone in the region.
“There’s no economic benefit to South Frontenac other than to destroy the environment,” Vandewal said.
“They’re cutting places in half… it’ll be devastating for generations if this thing goes through here.”
Vandewal mentioned he heard from Paterson that unless a corridor services Kingston with a stop nearby, they won’t support this proposal either. A motion addressing this will be brought up at an upcoming council meeting.
As things stand now, while Alto’s southern route brings trains closer to Kingston, there isn’t any plan for a stop within Kingston itself. Stops are only planned for Ottawa, Peterborough, and Toronto along Ontario’s route.
Currently, residents in Kingston can use VIA Rail for train services; however, some regional offerings from VIA have faced uncertainty lately.
An email sent by Lanark-Frontenac MP Scott Reid to a constituent indicated that either high-speed rail option could lead to fewer riders on VIA Rail and potentially result in service cuts affecting Kingston and other southeastern Ontario towns.
“It is highly likely that the high-speed rail service would result in the end of the existing Via Rail service that passes through Kingston, Smiths Falls, and other centres along the existing Via Rail line,” Reid wrote in his email.
“The promoters of the Alto project may suggest otherwise but as a practical matter all commuters who are seeking to go from Montreal or Ottawa to Toronto will choose the faster Alto train and will thereby strip away at least three-quarters of Via’s passenger traffic.”
Reid points out in his email that this could make VIA “financially untenable” after already suffering considerable losses over recent years.
Alto mentioned plans for integrating VIA Rail services with their high-speed line eventually and suggested this “offers an opportunity to improve services on these existing rail routes so as to better address local needs.”
<پ<Alto described both options presented for their corridor: one northern route offering quicker travel times but requiring work in remote areas with sensitive ecosystems; whereas their southern option promises easier construction and operations overall.</پ
A public information session hosted by Alto is scheduled at Storrington Lions Club on Wednesday Feb. 18 2026.
The Mayor pointed out he told representatives from Alto that having this information session “is a little late,” expecting no change in community sentiment towards their proposal. Owen Fullerton is a Kingston-based Local Journalism Initiative (LJI) reporter with YGK News. The LJI is funded by Government Canada.Source link
