Abstract Manager

As Canada advances planning for its first high-speed rail (HSR) corridors, success will depend not only on track design and rolling stock, but on the broader systems that enable reliable, resilient, and integrated operations. This presentation synthesizes international field research and cold-climate technical training to identify planning and asset management lessons relevant to Canadian HSR implementation.

The analysis draws from first-hand observations across more than twelve global rail systems, including seven high-speed rail networks and a wide range of regional and metropolitan services. These observations include systems in Japan, France, Italy, South Korea, Switzerland, and Türkiye, and are complemented by focused Nordic technical training in ETCS signalling, winter railway operations, and cold-climate infrastructure practices in Finland and Scandinavia. Together, these experiences inform a systems-level framework for “building around HSR,” emphasizing feeder transit integration, station accessibility, operational resilience, and lifecycle asset considerations.

Key findings highlight the importance of early alignment between HSR infrastructure and surrounding mobility networks, including regional rail, metro, active transportation, and station-area circulation. Nordic case studies further demonstrate how cold-weather operations—such as snow management, extreme temperature performance, signalling reliability, and maintenance strategies—must be embedded into planning and asset decisions from the outset, rather than treated as post-construction adaptations.

The presentation translates these international lessons into practical considerations for Canadian contexts, particularly for cold-climate and Prairie corridors where winter reliability and long-term asset performance are critical. Rather than proposing a single design solution, the session offers a planning-oriented framework to help agencies, planners, and asset managers assess readiness, reduce implementation risk, and improve long-term outcomes as Canada moves toward high-speed rail delivery.

This contribution aims to support informed decision-making by bridging global best practices with Canadian operational, climatic, and institutional realities.