Fact check: It's not true that Canada is the only G-7 country without high speed rail.

There is only ONE high-speed rail project in the entire United States. It's not up and running, and will probably never be finished.

This shows that Alto is wrong when it claims that Canada is the only G-7 country that has no high-speed rail.

The failing project is the California High-Speed Rail project which would have connected Lost Angeles to San Francisco.

The project was approved by California voters in 2008. 

This contrasts with Canada, where the Alto project was simply announced by Ottawa in February 2025, without any approval by Parliament, and without the chance for any discussion in the media.

According to Wikipedia:

"The project has been politically controversial. 

"Supporters state that it would alleviate housing shortages, air traffic and highway congestion, reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and provide economic benefits by linking the state's inland regions to coastal cities.

"Opponents argue that the project is too expensive in principle, has lost control of cost and schedule, and that the budgetary commitment precludes other transportation or infrastructure projects in the state. 

"The route choice has been controversial, along with the decision to construct the first high-speed segment in the Central Valley rather than in more heavily populated parts of the state. 

"The project has experienced significant delays and cost overruns caused by management issues, legal challenges and permitting hold-ups, and inefficiencies from inadequate and sporadic funding."

The California project was initially said to cost $33 billion to $45 billion. It now is projected to cost $89 billion to $135 billion.

Many people now doubt that it will ever be completed.

The federal government recently announced it will stop a $4 billion contribution to the project.

See details below.