Consultation Recap: Canadians Helped Shape the Conversation

Listening is an important part of building a project of this scale.

Earlier this year, Alto invited the public, stakeholders, municipalities, organizations and Indigenous communities to share their questions, concerns and perspectives on Canada’s high-speed rail project. 

Participation was strong: 26 open houses, 31 roundtable discussions, 10 virtual sessions, and an online consultation platform helped gather input from communities across the corridor. More than 10,000 people attended open houses and over 324,000 Canadians visited the online consultation platform.

The public consultation focused on the study corridor, which is a broad area being analyzed as Alto works toward identifying a future route. Participants shared perspectives on topics such as community impacts, property acquisition and agricultural concerns, environmental protection, station planning, local benefits, construction and future travel needs. 

In parallel to the public engagement activities, Alto has been consulting Indigenous communities from October 2025 to June 2026. These conversations reflected community perspectives on land, cultural heritage, environmental protection, farming impacts, restoration opportunities, and meaningful participation as the project advances. 

The feedback gathered will help inform the next stages of planning, including corridor refinement, future route analysis, and station planning. It will also support Alto’s work to reduce potential impacts, strengthen local benefits, and continue meaningful dialogue with communities. 

The next phase of public consultation is planned for fall 2026 and will present a narrowed corridor for the Central segment between Ottawa and Montréal. Consultations for the Western and Eastern segments are expected to follow in 2027.