Budget watchdog says Alto rail construction could cost more than Ottawa predicts

OTTAWA — The federal budget watchdog says construction of a high-speed rail line between Toronto and Québec City could cost more than Ottawa’s estimate.

The Office of the Parliamentary Budget Officer released a report this morning that attempts to put a dollar figure on the federal government’s proposed Alto high-speed rail corridor.

Ottawa has released project cost estimates of between $60 billion and $90 billion, but the PBO believes the price tag will range from $75 billion to $113 billion.

The PBO says the experiences in other jurisdictions show there’s a lot of uncertainty involved in large infrastructure projects and cutting through the rocky Canadian Shield will pose engineering challenges.