They've been in communication with several other potential investors, it was just never heavily publicized.
Indeed. One of them is a very well known Capital Company.
What's so curious is the venom against such entrepreneurship. It's the basis of almost every major city's present day rail transit system. And like it or not, Ontario, even under the previous regime, turned to private capital to DBFOM most of GO's expansion. The present regime will go even further.
Some of the most successful rail transit systems in the world are privately funded, built and operated. I wish it were otherwise, but I wish for a lot of things. As it stands, Watson, like a lot of Cdn city mayors, is 'holding the line on tax increases'. As well as delaying the LRT extension, it's delaying a solution to the massive traffic problem in Ottawa.
The worse the jams, the greater the need for private intervention with rail. That's not a case of "spreading sprawl". It's a case of dealing with the already far too extensive sprawl of Ottawa and Region.
In the event, if and when Moose does become a reality, or an analog of it, it won't be based on GO Transit's present rolling stock and model. It will be based on something much more modern, efficient and affordable. Examples already abound in many nations. And a number of them were built and financed by the same holding company that built and supplied the rolling stock.
There's ample evidence on-line of my above claim. "Ah"...but some naive fools will write, "they're not Canadian!". Which would be correct. So far. It's getting very close:
Ambitious light rail project for Montreal proposed by Caisse de dépôt
$5.5B project funded by province's pension fund would span West Island, South Shore
Benjamin Shingler, Steve Rukavina · CBC News · Posted: Apr 22, 2016 6:40 AM ET | Last Updated: April 22, 2016
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/caisse-de-depot-train-de-louest-champlain-bridge-1.3548109
How close? It was ostensibly first going to be supplied rolling stock from Bombardier, of which the Caisse owns 30% of the transportation division, but due to friction and complexities between BBD and the Caisse (the Caisse wanted BBD to sell the transpo division to CRRC)(
Bombardier should consider rail deal with China's CRRC: Caisse CEO ), the order for the rolling stock went to Alstom instead.
[...]
Urban transit projects continue to shape the growth of Canadian cities and knowing how to successfully deliver these complex projects is a challenge. Attend The Canadian Institute’s 2nd Annual Delivering Urban Transit Infrastructure Conference on April 27 & 28, 2016
Delegates last year stated that the conference delivered a “good crosssection of topics relating to design, build, finance and O&M, as well as a good cross-section of Canadian and U.S. representation”. Delegates also found that the preconference workshops “provided great insight into Moody’s methods and P3 Canada’s goals.”
http://www.weirfoulds.com/files/17609_315D16-TOR.pdf
Welcome to the future, Canada. Since the politicians are so beholden to getting elected on platforms almost always based on "No tax increase" (and all the permutations, but Joe Buck a Beer only hears 'taxes'), then if you want tomorrow's solutions today, it's got to come from entrepreneurship.