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Quebecers Love the High-Speed Train Their Separatist Leader Wants to Kill

New polling finds Paul St-Pierre Plamondon out of step with much of the electorate

Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon’s criticism of the federal government’s proposed high-speed rail project generated no shortage of headlines last week in Quebec media.

The Alto line would link Quebec City and Toronto, with stops in Trois-Rivières, Laval, Montreal, Ottawa, and Peterborough. Reaching speeds of more than 300 kilometres per hour, the trains would cut the trip from Montreal to Toronto to about three hours, while travel between Montreal and Quebec City would take roughly ninety minutes.

St-Pierre Plamondon was unconvinced. “We can neither afford nor have any interest in paying for a train that could cost as much as 200 billion dollars,” he posted on X, “the primary purpose of which is to satisfy the federal Liberal government’s desire for ‘nation building’ and to strengthen Canadian unity.” The $200 billion figure does not come from Alto or the federal government. It originates solely with the math skills of Bloc Québécois member of Parliament Jean-Denis Garon, who claimed the official estimate of $60 billion to $90 billion significantly understates its final price tag.

The PQ leader argued the money would be better spent on Quebec’s aging infrastructure. His remark caught many by surprise. Mayors along the proposed route endorsed the rail link as a rare chance to boost regional economies and modernize one of the country’s busiest economic corridors. Even Quebec premier Christine Fréchette, leader of the governing nationalist Coalition Avenir Québec, accused the PQ of “turning its back” on Quebec City, as reported by the Canadian Press.

As the debate unfolded, I happened to be finalizing the questionnaire for a new Quebec survey conducted by Pallas Data commissioned by 338Canada. Given the timing, I added a simple question: “Based on what you have read or heard, are you favourable or unfavourable to the federal government’s high-speed rail project between Quebec City and........

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