Passenger rail service is on track to return to the Hwy. 11 corridor sometime in 2026… and the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission is ready to talk publicly about plans for a station in Porcupine.
ONTC chair Al Spacek says two public information sessions are set for Thursday, at the Legion in South Porcupine. He says there is no design yet, because engineering work still needs to be done.
“I think that’s why it’s important to get feedback from the public,” Spacek remarks, “in case there’s good, valid input that we want to make sure is incorporated into the design.”
He denies reports that Ontario Northland also plans to build a hotel nearby, but says the station does open a lot of private commercial opportunities.
“We have been in conversations with the City of Timmins and they are looking at putting a Timmins Transit station there as well. So there’s other synergies that may lead to some business opportunities in the community at large.”
The first Thursday session is from 11:00am until 2:00pm, followed by another one between 3:00pm and 7:00pm.