The mayors of Prescott-Russell put their support behind a resolution from their counterparts throughout Eastern Ontario opposing a proposed high-speed rail project through the region without more and better consultation with municipalities.

The United Counties of Prescott-Russell council (UCPR) voted during its March 27 session to support a resolution from the Eastern Ontario Wardens Caucus (EOWC) opposing the proposed ALTO high-speed rail project “in its current form.”

The EOWC represents 103 municipalities in Eastern Ontario and their regional county groups. The UCPR is part of the EOWC to represent the interests of the eight municipalities in Prescott-Russell.

“There was a lot of discussion and concern,” said Warden Mario Zanth, regarding the recent March session of the EOWC. “Not on the train itself, but on how the (project planning) process is unfolding. The lack of information (EOWC) members have regarding where the (route) corridor is actually going to be fixed, all of the discussion surrounding the open houses (meetings), and the availability of information.”

Zanth was involved in working out details for the final draft of the EOWC resolution.

“The caucus fetlt it was better to take a stance now, rather than later,” he said.

The EOWC resolution notes that right now there is just one proposed stop across the 50,000-square-kilometre region under the EOWC’s jurisdiction and that stop would benefit urban residents “at the cost of rural residents and (farm) lands”, and that parts of the final train route could impact communities, farmlands, recreational areas, and environmentally-sensitive areas in Eastern Ontario “with no long-term economic benefits”. The resolution criticizes both the federal government and ALTO for “insufficient municipal consultation” on the project, including details and impacts, and urges more emphasis go to using existing infrastructure corridors like VIA Rail and Highway 401 as train route options.