Niagara’s Proposal:

• Daily, year-round GO Train service between Niagara and Hamilton, connecting to the Lakeshore West Line to Toronto, with stops in Grimsby, St. Catharines and Niagara Falls
• Economic Impact: $195 million for Niagara
• Project Cost: Between $100-$120 million, including a one-third local contribution

Key Achievements in 2015:

• Conducted a public awareness and engagement campaign, putting Niagara’s GO Train proposal on the Province’s radar
• Comprehensive Business Case, including capital and operating scenarios, completed and submitted to Province in April followed by ongoing and frequent meetings with provincial officials, including the Minister and Deputy Minister of Transportation, Premier’s office, Metrolinx and GO Transit

Resolving Barriers:

• The GO project team worked throughout 2015 to address and resolve 17 perceived barriers or issues with Niagara’s business case identified by the Province. Key issues included:
• Welland Canal Crossing: The GO team secured commitment, in writing, for dedicated crossing times from the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corporation – eliminating the Canal as a barrier to GO
• Use of existing CN tracks: Through months of technical work, the GO team secured agreement from CN the $50 million in planned track upgrades outlined in our business case was valid
• Ridership forecasting and economics: Extensive work was done with MTO and Metrolinx to determine the cost-benefit ratio of daily GO Train service. Provincial officials agree there is a positive economic benefit, both to Niagara, and to the province

Project Status:

• The Province now has everything it needs to make a decision on daily GO Train service to Niagara
• The Province is now assembling a list of non-GTA expandable communities for consideration in the next wave of GO train expansions. Our solid business case has given us a leading position in this conversation. Our goal is to have Niagara GO Train expansion included in the next wave of GO train expansion projects

The following status update was provided by the Region of Niagara. For more information, please contact Matt Robinson, Director of Corporate Communications, Niagara Region, at 905-980-6000 ext. 3198.