LONDON, Ont. - Ontario's premier is announcing this morning that the province is taking steps toward a high-speed rail corridor between Toronto and Windsor.

The government says Ontario is the first province to undertake a "rail transformation" on this scale.

Last month's provincial budget announced that the government would go ahead with an environmental assessment for the project and today the premier says the province is investing $15 million for that.

Preliminary design work is also starting and the government will establish a new body to oversee the project.

Trains on the planned rail link would travel up to 250 kilometres per hour, which is expected to cut travel times between Toronto and Windsor from four hours to two.

In 2015, the government tapped a special adviser on high-speed rail to assess the possibility of such a project, and David Collenette concluded there is a business case for it as well as opportunities to partner with the private sector for funding.