Quebec City’s decision to take control of the Réseau express métropolitain project (REM) from the East and eliminating the stretch of downtown Montreal was met with a mixture of relief and concern on Monday. In particular, it suggests a rapid saturation of the green line of the metro, to which the REM must connect.
Francois Legault said his government’s decision to forego the downtown section prompted the Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ) to pull out of the project. “The Caisse has chosen not to sue, and I understand them. We are in a situation where, by removing the downtown section, it became a project that was not profitable for the Caisse, ”explained the Prime Minister.
Orders for the project will be entrusted to the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM), the Ministère des Transports du Québec (MTQ), the City of Montreal and the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), which will have to analyze the file. and make proposals to the government. A first meeting between the partners was already scheduled for Monday afternoon.
A REM that would go further?
If the downtown segment is eliminated, the alignments to the east and north will be maintained. “The rest of the route is receiving a favorable reception,” said François Legault.
The committee’s mandate will be to analyze scenarios aimed at connecting the future REM de l’Est to the metro’s green line, which will require increasing the frequency of the metro, specified Valerie Plante. It will also have to examine the possibility of extending the REM from the East to Lanaudière (via its eastern branch) and Laval (for its branch to Marie-Victorin College). The integration of the REM in the Souligny sector of Mercier-Est will also have to be improved, argued François Legault.
Quebec intends to keep the technology developed by CDPQ Infra, but the entire financial package for the project, whose initial cost was estimated at $10 billion, will have to be reviewed. Adding sections to Lanaudière and Laval is likely to increase revenue, noted François Legault.
The project schedule will also have to be reconsidered. “People who know me know that I don’t have a lot of patience, and I want this project to happen as soon as possible,” said the Prime Minister. “It’s crucial for the development of the east end of Montreal. »
A mistake to avoid
For Mayor Valérie Plante, the changes made to the project represent a victory for the City of Montreal, which demanded a decision-making role. “The aerial section in the city center was a historic mistake that absolutely had to be avoided,” she argued.
Mayor Plante also believes that the proposed solution responds to concerns expressed regarding the impacts of the REM on heritage preservation, particularly Chinatown and morgan park, in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. “It will no longer be a problem,” she said.
The revision of the project had a flavor of victory for the citizens of Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, who had been fighting for months against the arrival of aerial structures along Notre-Dame Street and their encroachment on Morgan Park. “It means that we were really right,” commented Patricia Clermont, from the Regroupement des riparians de la rue Notre-Dame. “This decision was necessary. »
The East Montreal Chamber of Commerce (CCEM) did not hide its disappointment that direct access to downtown, deemed “essential” for it, was disappearing. “It is unthinkable to envisage the fact that the West Island and the South Shore will have a direct link with the downtown area of our metropolis, while the East of Montreal will be outdone”, said sorry its CEO, Jean-Denis Charest.
Le President of the Angus Development Company, Christian Yaccarini, believes that, without the intervention of Quebec, the REM de l’Est would not have been possible. Like the CCEM, however, he deplores the loss of direct access to the city center for the east of the metropolis. However, he hopes that the new partners who will pilot the project will analyze the possibility of an underground link with the city center – which CDPQ Infra has never really examined, according to him.
The green Line
Lecturer at the University of Montreal and expert in transport planning, Pierre Barrieau sees the saving of the project in a good light. He even believes that examining extensions to Lanaudière and Laval is a good idea, although there is concern about a possible dezoning of agricultural land in Laval territory.
But what poses a problem, according to him, is the predictable and rapid saturation of the green line of the metro, which will also serve the SRB Pie-IX. “The green line will become worse than the orange line after the opening of the three stations in Laval. I am convinced that we are going straight into the wall, ”he said. In this context, Quebec should consider a tramway along René-Lévesque Boulevard, he believes: “It’s time to rethink mobility for short trips, which the REM had difficulty to respond. »
Regarding the green line, the STM argues that its participation in the multiparty committee will enable it to ensure “effective integration” of the project with existing services. “One of the objectives pursued by the STM is to ensure a pleasant and efficient travel experience for current customers of the green line as well as new customers of the REM,” said spokesperson Philippe Déry.
The REM de l’Est project and its aerial structures in the city center had been fueling controversy for months. In particular, it had been the subject of severe criticism from the ARTM. Last March, the committee of independent experts mandated by Quebec to ensure the urban integration of the project had also expressed significant concerns about the risk of urban fracture that an aerial REM would cause.