Quebec greenlights first steps of tramway project in eastern Montreal

Quebec's Transport Minister has fixed the go-ahead for the first steps of a tramway project replacing the contentious REM de l'Est light-rail project — broadening nationalist transit options for commuters successful eastbound Montreal.

Geneviève Guilbault made the announcement astatine a quality league astatine the Repentigny, Que., metropolis hallway Wednesday morning.

The tram volition beryllium developed by Quebec's caller transport agency, Mobilité Infra Québec (MIQ), becoming its archetypal project. However, the region's nationalist transit authority, Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM), will oversee the archetypal phases of the project.

A telephone for tenders will beryllium issued successful the fall. MIQ volition instrumentality implicit from the ARTM erstwhile the bureau is up and running, thing Guilbault estimates should hap by the extremity of this year.

"We don't person immoderate clip to waste," said Guilbault astatine Wednesday's quality conference.

WATCH | Some critics accidental tramway won't entreaty to car-dependent residents: 

She says the procurement process should beryllium done by 2027 astatine the latest.

The projected way would bring riders done the eastbound extremity of the metropolis into Montréal Est and Repentigny, Que., a suburb eastbound of the city. It would besides link to the STM's Blue and Green Metro lines and to the Mascouche enactment of the Exo commuter train.

"You tin spare up to 1 hr if you springiness up your car and instrumentality this eventual tramway," Guilbault said. 

The task is expected to outgo much than $18 billion, according to ARTM's estimates successful a 2024 report.

CDPQ Infra, a subsidiary of the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, initially led the project, which was called REM de l'Est astatine the time, to bespeak its imaginativeness of an automated light-rail train. CDPQ Infra backed retired aft the authorities decided the way wouldn't link straight to Montreal's downtown. The authorities took it implicit successful 2022 and the project was renamed Projet structurant de l'Est (PSE).

Repentigny Mayor Nicolas Dufour, who joined Guilbault astatine the quality conference, said his residents person been waiting for existent nationalist transit options for astir 40 years.

"My citizens suffer astir an hour, an hour-and-a-half to spell to Montreal to enactment each morning — same for the students. So, for the archetypal time, we're going to person a existent and existent alternate to single-occupancy vehicles," Dufour said connected CBC Montreal's Daybreak earlier Wednesday morning.

Dufour said he'd similar to spot much autobus lines, successful the meantime, but that they get stuck successful postulation similar each different conveyance erstwhile going to Montreal.

"There's thing overmuch we tin bash due to the fact that we lone person 1 mode to spell to Montreal and it's stuck each morning. So it's genuinely indispensable that the task moves accelerated and we conception the tramway the fastest that we can," helium said.

He's hoping the nationalist transit task volition assistance bring much radical to Repentigny and stimulate economical activity.

Some accidental task could beryllium improved

Rodrigo Victoriano-Habit, a probe adjunct with Transportation Research astatine McGill, says immoderate task that encourages radical to determination distant from car-dependent mobility is simply a win. But the tram's price tag could beryllium adjacent cheaper, helium said.

He says due to the fact that the tramway volition run connected a ground-rail, the clip savings aren't that significant.

"We tin execute the aforesaid [by] giving buses their ain close of mode and this takes the aforesaid magnitude of abstraction for a overmuch little terms tag and it besides gets built successful a little magnitude of time," helium said. 

He says buses aren't precise charismatic politically, but "it's 1 of the compromises we person to marque if we privation reliable fast transit that is not being affected by car traffic."

He says upgrading the existing Mascouche Exo enactment to REM modular besides could person been an option.

Philippe Jacques, a spokesperson for Trajectoire Québec — an enactment that promotes nationalist proscription passim the state — welcomed Wednesday's announcement. 

"We've been waiting for a agelong clip for that task and it's bully to spot however galore radical were present today," helium said.

But similar Victoriano-Habit, helium believes determination is country for improvement. 

He says there's interest implicit however accelerated commuters volition beryllium capable to get downtown utilizing the aboriginal tram.  

"Right now, it's 1 and a fractional hours to instrumentality nationalist transit to spell from Montreal to Terrebonne oregon Repentigny, oregon the different way. And with a car, it's lone similar 30 minutes," Jacques said.

"So we're not definite it's going to beryllium that adjacent to the car. We request to vie against the car." 

The issue, helium said, is that immoderate sections of the task volition beryllium moving done denser residential neighbourhoods, wherever having fast-moving trains is not desirable. 

"It's not a cleanable project. It won't beryllium perfect, but still, things tin beryllium added connected successful the adjacent months oregon years," Jacques said.