diff --git a/core/lib/Drupal.php b/core/lib/Drupal.php
index 0ec88d7..f98d607 100644
--- a/core/lib/Drupal.php
+++ b/core/lib/Drupal.php
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
  * Contains Drupal.
  */
 
+use Drupal\Core\Url;
 use Symfony\Component\DependencyInjection\ContainerInterface;
 
 /**
@@ -517,7 +518,13 @@ public static function linkGenerator() {
    * @see \Drupal\Core\Utility\LinkGeneratorInterface::generate()
    */
   public static function l($text, $route_name, array $parameters = array(), array $options = array()) {
-    return static::$container->get('link_generator')->generate($text, $route_name, $parameters, $options);
+    $link_generator = static::linkGenerator();
+    if ($route_name instanceof Url) {
+      return $link_generator->generateFromUrl($text, $route_name);
+    }
+    else {
+      return $link_generator->generate($text, $route_name, $parameters, $options);
+    }
   }
 
   /**
diff --git a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Url.php b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Url.php
index 8b79112..4a55f55 100644
--- a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Url.php
+++ b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Url.php
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@
 
 namespace Drupal\Core;
 
+use Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGeneratorInterface;
+
 /**
  * Defines an object that holds information about an internal route.
  */
@@ -206,6 +208,18 @@ public function toArray() {
   }
 
   /**
+   * Returns the internal path for this route.
+   *
+   * This path will not include any prefixes, fragments, or query strings.
+   *
+   * @return string
+   *   The internal path for this route.
+   */
+  public function getInternalPath() {
+    return $this->urlGenerator()->getPathFromRoute($this->getRouteName(), $this->getRouteParameters());
+  }
+
+  /**
    * {@inheritdoc}
    */
   public function __sleep() {
@@ -226,4 +240,17 @@ protected function urlGenerator() {
     return $this->urlGenerator;
   }
 
+  /**
+   * Sets the URL generator.
+   *
+   * @param \Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGeneratorInterface
+   *   The URL generator.
+   *
+   * @return $this
+   */
+  public function setUrlGenerator(UrlGeneratorInterface $url_generator) {
+    $this->urlGenerator = $url_generator;
+    return $this;
+  }
+
 }
diff --git a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGenerator.php b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGenerator.php
index 2874da4..bea2f0d 100644
--- a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGenerator.php
+++ b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGenerator.php
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@
 use Drupal\Core\Path\AliasManagerInterface;
 use Drupal\Core\Template\Attribute;
 use Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGeneratorInterface;
-use Drupal\Core\Session\AccountInterface;
+use Drupal\Core\Url;
 use Symfony\Cmf\Component\Routing\RouteObjectInterface;
 use Symfony\Component\HttpFoundation\Request;
 
@@ -99,6 +99,74 @@ public function getActive() {
 
   /**
    * {@inheritdoc}
+   */
+  public function generateFromUrl($text, Url $url) {
+    // @todo Inject the service when drupal_render() is converted to one.
+    $text = is_array($text) ? drupal_render($text) : $text;
+
+    // Merge in default options.
+    $options = $url->getRouteOptions();
+    $options += array(
+      'attributes' => array(),
+      'query' => array(),
+      'html' => FALSE,
+      'language' => NULL,
+      'set_active_class' => FALSE,
+      'absolute' => FALSE,
+    );
+
+    // Add a hreflang attribute if we know the language of this link's url and
+    // hreflang has not already been set.
+    if (!empty($options['language']) && !isset($options['attributes']['hreflang'])) {
+      $options['attributes']['hreflang'] = $options['language']->id;
+    }
+
+    // Set the "active" class if the 'set_active_class' option is not empty.
+    if (!empty($options['set_active_class'])) {
+      // Add a "data-drupal-link-query" attribute to let the
+      // drupal.active-link library know the query in a standardized manner.
+      if (!empty($options['query'])) {
+        $query = $options['query'];
+        ksort($query);
+        $options['attributes']['data-drupal-link-query'] = Json::encode($query);
+      }
+
+      // Add a "data-drupal-link-system-path" attribute to let the
+      // drupal.active-link library know the path in a standardized manner.
+      if (!isset($options['attributes']['data-drupal-link-system-path'])) {
+        $options['attributes']['data-drupal-link-system-path'] = $this->aliasManager->getSystemPath($url->getInternalPath());
+      }
+    }
+
+    // Remove all HTML and PHP tags from a tooltip, calling expensive strip_tags()
+    // only when a quick strpos() gives suspicion tags are present.
+    if (isset($options['attributes']['title']) && strpos($options['attributes']['title'], '<') !== FALSE) {
+      $options['attributes']['title'] = strip_tags($options['attributes']['title']);
+    }
+
+    // Update the options before allowing altering.
+    $url->setRouteOptions($options);
+
+    // Allow other modules to modify the structure of the link.
+    $this->moduleHandler->alter('link', $text, $url);
+
+    // Move attributes out of options. generateFromRoute(() doesn't need them.
+    $attributes = new Attribute($options['attributes']);
+    unset($options['attributes']);
+    $url->setRouteOptions($options);
+
+    // The result of the url generator is a plain-text URL. Because we are using
+    // it here in an HTML argument context, we need to encode it properly.
+    $url = String::checkPlain($url->toString());
+
+    // Sanitize the link text if necessary.
+    $text = $options['html'] ? $text : String::checkPlain($text);
+
+    return '<a href="' . $url . '"' . $attributes . '>' . $text . '</a>';
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * {@inheritdoc}
    *
    * For anonymous users, the "active" class will be calculated on the server,
    * because most sites serve each anonymous user the same cached page anyway.
@@ -110,69 +178,9 @@ public function getActive() {
    * @see system_page_build()
    */
   public function generate($text, $route_name, array $parameters = array(), array $options = array()) {
-    // Start building a structured representation of our link to be altered later.
-    $variables = array(
-      // @todo Inject the service when drupal_render() is converted to one.
-      'text' => is_array($text) ? drupal_render($text) : $text,
-      'route_name' => $route_name,
-      'parameters' => $parameters,
-      'options' => $options,
-    );
-
-    // Merge in default options.
-    $variables['options'] += array(
-      'attributes' => array(),
-      'query' => array(),
-      'html' => FALSE,
-      'language' => NULL,
-      'set_active_class' => FALSE,
-    );
-
-    // Add a hreflang attribute if we know the language of this link's url and
-    // hreflang has not already been set.
-    if (!empty($variables['options']['language']) && !isset($variables['options']['attributes']['hreflang'])) {
-      $variables['options']['attributes']['hreflang'] = $variables['options']['language']->id;
-    }
-
-    // Set the "active" class if the 'set_active_class' option is not empty.
-    if (!empty($variables['options']['set_active_class'])) {
-      // Add a "data-drupal-link-query" attribute to let the
-      // drupal.active-link library know the query in a standardized manner.
-      if (!empty($variables['options']['query'])) {
-        $query = $variables['options']['query'];
-        ksort($query);
-        $variables['options']['attributes']['data-drupal-link-query'] = Json::encode($query);
-      }
-
-      // Add a "data-drupal-link-system-path" attribute to let the
-      // drupal.active-link library know the path in a standardized manner.
-      if (!isset($variables['options']['attributes']['data-drupal-link-system-path'])) {
-        $path = $this->urlGenerator->getPathFromRoute($route_name, $parameters);
-        $variables['options']['attributes']['data-drupal-link-system-path'] = $this->aliasManager->getSystemPath($path);
-      }
-    }
-
-    // Remove all HTML and PHP tags from a tooltip, calling expensive strip_tags()
-    // only when a quick strpos() gives suspicion tags are present.
-    if (isset($variables['options']['attributes']['title']) && strpos($variables['options']['attributes']['title'], '<') !== FALSE) {
-      $variables['options']['attributes']['title'] = strip_tags($variables['options']['attributes']['title']);
-    }
-
-    // Allow other modules to modify the structure of the link.
-    $this->moduleHandler->alter('link', $variables);
-
-    // Move attributes out of options. generateFromRoute(() doesn't need them.
-    $attributes = new Attribute($variables['options']['attributes']);
-    unset($variables['options']['attributes']);
-
-    // The result of the url generator is a plain-text URL. Because we are using
-    // it here in an HTML argument context, we need to encode it properly.
-    $url = String::checkPlain($this->urlGenerator->generateFromRoute($variables['route_name'], $variables['parameters'], $variables['options']));
-
-    // Sanitize the link text if necessary.
-    $text = $variables['options']['html'] ? $variables['text'] : String::checkPlain($variables['text']);
-
-    return '<a href="' . $url . '"' . $attributes . '>' . $text . '</a>';
+    $url = new Url($route_name, $parameters, $options);
+    $url->setUrlGenerator($this->urlGenerator);
+    return $this->generateFromUrl($text, $url);
   }
 
 }
diff --git a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGeneratorInterface.php b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGeneratorInterface.php
index 02e31af..851100d 100644
--- a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGeneratorInterface.php
+++ b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Utility/LinkGeneratorInterface.php
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@
 
 namespace Drupal\Core\Utility;
 
+use Drupal\Core\Url;
+
 /**
  * Defines an interface for generating links from route names and parameters.
  */
@@ -78,6 +80,19 @@
   public function generate($text, $route_name, array $parameters = array(), array $options = array());
 
   /**
+   * Renders a link to a URL.
+   *
+   * @param string $text
+   *   The link text for the anchor tag as a translated string.
+   * @param \Drupal\Core\Url $url
+   *   The URL object used for the link.
+   *
+   * @return string
+   *   An HTML string containing a link to the given route and parameters.
+   */
+  public function generateFromUrl($text, Url $url);
+
+  /**
    * Returns information for the currently active route.
    *
    * @return array
diff --git a/core/modules/system/system.api.php b/core/modules/system/system.api.php
index d4c1039..ce889f1 100644
--- a/core/modules/system/system.api.php
+++ b/core/modules/system/system.api.php
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@
  * Hooks provided by Drupal core and the System module.
  */
 
+use Drupal\Core\Url;
 use Drupal\Core\Utility\UpdateException;
 
 /**
@@ -3091,50 +3092,35 @@ function hook_filetransfer_info_alter(&$filetransfer_info) {
 /**
  * Alter the parameters for links.
  *
- * @param array $variables
- *   An associative array of variables defining a link. The link may be either a
- *   "route link" using \Drupal\Core\Utility\LinkGenerator::link(), which is
- *   exposed as the 'link_generator' service or a link generated by l(). If the
- *   link is a "route link", 'route_name' will be set, otherwise 'path' will be
- *   set. The following keys can be altered:
- *   - text: The link text for the anchor tag as a translated string.
- *   - url_is_active: Whether or not the link points to the currently active
- *     URL.
- *   - path: If this link is being generated by l(), this system path, relative
- *     path, or external URL will be passed to url() to generate the href
- *     attribute for this link.
- *   - route_name: The name of the route to use to generate the link, if
- *     this is a "route link".
- *   - parameters: Any parameters needed to render the route path pattern, if
- *     this is a "route link".
- *   - options: An associative array of additional options that will be passed
- *     to either \Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGenerator::generateFromPath() or
- *     \Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGenerator::generateFromRoute() to generate the
- *     href attribute for this link, and also used when generating the link.
- *     Defaults to an empty array. It may contain the following elements:
- *     - 'query': An array of query key/value-pairs (without any URL-encoding) to
- *       append to the URL.
- *     - absolute: Whether to force the output to be an absolute link (beginning
- *       with http:). Useful for links that will be displayed outside the site,
- *       such as in an RSS feed. Defaults to FALSE.
- *     - language: An optional language object. May affect the rendering of
- *       the anchor tag, such as by adding a language prefix to the path.
- *     - attributes: An associative array of HTML attributes to apply to the
- *       anchor tag. If element 'class' is included, it must be an array; 'title'
- *       must be a string; other elements are more flexible, as they just need
- *       to work as an argument for the constructor of the class
- *       Drupal\Core\Template\Attribute($options['attributes']).
- *     - html: Whether or not HTML should be allowed as the link text. If FALSE,
- *       the text will be run through
- *       \Drupal\Component\Utility\String::checkPlain() before being output.
+ * @param string $text
+ *   The link text for the anchor tag as a translated string.
+ * @param \Drupal\Core\Url $url
+ *   The URL object used for the link. Url::getRouteOptions() can contain many
+ *   keys, but the following are guaranteed to exist:
+ *   - query: An array of query key/value-pairs (without any URL-encoding) to
+ *     append to the URL.
+ *   - absolute: Whether to force the output to be an absolute link (beginning
+ *     with http:). Useful for links that will be displayed outside the site,
+ *     such as in an RSS feed. Defaults to FALSE.
+ *   - language: An optional language object. May affect the rendering of the
+ *     anchor tag, such as by adding a language prefix to the path.
+ *   - attributes: An associative array of HTML attributes to apply to the
+ *     anchor tag. If element 'class' is included, it must be an array; 'title'
+ *     must be a string; other elements are more flexible, as they just need
+ *     to work as an argument for the constructor of the class
+ *     \Drupal\Core\Template\Attribute($options['attributes']).
+ *   - html: Whether or not HTML should be allowed as the link text. If FALSE,
+ *     the text will be run through
+ *     \Drupal\Component\Utility\String::checkPlain() before being output.
+ *   - set_active_class: Whether to set the 'active' class or not.
  *
  * @see \Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGenerator::generateFromPath()
  * @see \Drupal\Core\Routing\UrlGenerator::generateFromRoute()
  */
-function hook_link_alter(&$variables) {
+function hook_link_alter(&$text, Url $url) {
   // Add a warning to the end of route links to the admin section.
-  if (isset($variables['route_name']) && strpos($variables['route_name'], 'admin') !== FALSE) {
-    $variables['text'] .= ' (Warning!)';
+  if (strpos($url->getRouteName(), 'admin') !== FALSE) {
+    $text .= ' (Warning!)';
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/core/tests/Drupal/Tests/Core/DrupalTest.php b/core/tests/Drupal/Tests/Core/DrupalTest.php
index b37010f..2a9e764 100644
--- a/core/tests/Drupal/Tests/Core/DrupalTest.php
+++ b/core/tests/Drupal/Tests/Core/DrupalTest.php
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@
 
 namespace Drupal\Tests\Core;
 
+use Drupal\Core\Url;
 use Drupal\Tests\UnitTestCase;
 
 /**
@@ -296,7 +297,30 @@ public function testL() {
       ->will($this->returnValue('link_html_string'));
     $this->setMockContainerService('link_generator', $generator);
 
-    $this->assertInternalType('string', \Drupal::l('Test title', 'test_route', $route_parameters, $options));
+    $link = \Drupal::l('Test title', 'test_route', $route_parameters, $options);
+    $this->assertSame('link_html_string', $link);
+    $this->assertInternalType('string', $link);
+  }
+
+  /**
+   * Tests the l() method.
+   *
+   * @see \Drupal\Core\Utility\LinkGeneratorInterface::generateFromUrl()
+   */
+  public function testLWithUrl() {
+    $route_parameters = array('test_parameter' => 'test');
+    $options = array('test_option' => 'test');
+    $url = new Url('test_route', $route_parameters, $options);
+    $generator = $this->getMock('Drupal\Core\Utility\LinkGeneratorInterface');
+    $generator->expects($this->once())
+      ->method('generateFromUrl')
+      ->with('Test title', $url)
+      ->will($this->returnValue('link_html_string'));
+    $this->setMockContainerService('link_generator', $generator);
+
+    $link = \Drupal::l('Test title', $url);
+    $this->assertSame('link_html_string', $link);
+    $this->assertInternalType('string', $link);
   }
 
   /**