The Ottawa-Toronto via Peterborough stretch is going to be a fucking gong show. There was a rail corridor along this route, and there's been talk of "we're gonna upgrade the old existing line". Maybe some of it, but there'll need to be a bunch of new track built. Mega $$$, mega time.
1) This was the original CP route surveyed/built in the 2nd half of the 19th century... for 19th century speeds, and 19th century purposes. This alignment has all kinds of twists, turns and elevation changes that a steam engine can navigate, but you aren't gonna run a train at 300km/h through, especially through the middle of a small town.
2) Vast stretches of this line were retired from service in the mid 20th century when passenger service ended, tracks were torn up and the land sold off. They have made great walking/biking/sled trails - pretty straight and flat. I can actually get the Mrs out on a bike on these (she doesn't like hills).
Look at the town of Sharbot lake, perfect example of this - you can see the trail where the old rail alignment was, and it runs across some water right through town with lots of bends. They're going to have to acquire a bunch of land, plough new track, build a whole bunch of underpasses/overpasses/bypasses. The geography sucks so bad that CP rail built a whole new Toronto-Montreal run along the lake , roughly parallel to the 401 corridor, in the early 20th century that is in use today for freight.
This won't get done in our lifetimes.
