It’s About Time: Martin Imbleau, President and CEO, ALTO

Canada stands at the threshold of a new economic era. For decades, high-speed rail has been a dream deferred—an aspiration studied, debated, and shelved. Now, with Alto’s bold new plan to connect Toronto, Peterborough, Ottawa, Montréal, Laval, Trois-Rivières, and Québec City, that dream is finally becoming reality.

Beneath the tracks lies a national opportunity to modernize production, source Canadian-made materials, and mobilize the workforce of tomorrow. High-speed rail is more than a transportation project. It represents a once-in-a-century investment that aligns perfectly with Canada’s current focus on building at home: strengthening infrastructure, advancing clean technology, supporting evolving interprovincial trade and preparing for a sustainable, competitive future. By directly linking major cities across provincial borders, Alto will enable faster movement of goods, talent, and ideas, laying the groundwork for a more competitive and deeply integrated Canadian marketplace.

This transformative network will connect 44 percent of Canada’s population and support more than 50,000 Canadian jobs during construction. The project is estimated to deliver structuring changes to the Canadian economy worth $24.5 billion annually—about 1.1 percent of Canada’s GDP every year. The ripple effects will touch nearly every sector of the economy.

On Thursday January 22nd, 2026 the Empire Club of Canada invited Martin Imbleau, President and CEO of ALTO for a keynote speech entitled It’s About Time  followed by a fireside chat with Sean Speer, Co-Founder and Editor-at-Large of the Hub

Sean Speer will also feature this conversation for Hub Podcasts on a future episode.

Businesses attending this Empire Club event gained insight on how to catalyze growth from future participation in this generational project—from infrastructure and technology innovation to regional development, workforce training, and cross-sector collaboration.