Prime Minister Legault will finally respect his happy new year wishes to Infoman by giving the green light to the Quebec tramway. But he rejects the idea of a Quebec-Lévis link dedicated to public transport, submitted by CDPQ Infra.
“We are buying this route and we are committed to building this route,” the Prime Minister said Thursday about the tramway.
This 19 kilometer route constitutes the backbone of the project. It would connect the Le Gendre sector in the west to the suburbs of Charlesbourg in the north over 21 kilometers. In its report, CDPQ-Infra estimates its production costs at $5.5 billion.
A good deal, underlines the Prime Minister, since the “new technologies” proposed by the CDPQ (on the size of the wagons in particular and the use of a hybrid system) will make it possible to generate “significant savings” compared to what was proposed. previously.
An argument which allows François Legault to respond to those who accuse him of having wasted Quebec City’s time with his hesitations in the matter.
“It’s clear that the six-month break was beneficial,” he said. “It gives us an overall plan that is even better than what was announced. »
No to the under-river tramway
However, the government does not endorse the entirety of the $15 billion plan over fifteen years planned by CDPQ Infra.
First, he rejects the idea of connecting Quebec and Lévis by a tunnel reserved for the tramway, even if this is what his government had proposed when the third link was abandoned in April 2023.
“For the moment, it is not one of our priorities. […] What we want is a highway link between Quebec and Lévis. »
The Prime Minister also puts on hold part of the first phase of the CITÉ project which totaled not 5.5 billion dollars, but 9.1 billion.
In addition to the tramway, this phase provides for the addition of two rapid bus service (SRB) lines: one in Lévis, at a cost of $2.4 billion, and a smaller one in Quebec along Charest Boulevard ($610 million). ).
It also includes the addition of 30.5 kilometers of dedicated lanes for express buses connecting the northern outskirts of Quebec to the city center (780 million).
“The SRB and bus part will be discussed with the mayors of Quebec and Lévis, but we are indeed open to carrying out everything in phase 1,” said Mr. Legault. “We do not want to impose the Caisse’s exact proposals on the two cities. »
La Caisse in charge, initially
Quebec has also confirmed its intention to “probably” give CDPQ Infra the mandate to carry out the first phase of the project as it wishes.
The future transport agency Mobilité Infra Québec will not be ready in time, agreed Minister Geneviève Guilbault.
“We don’t want to wait for the agency because we don’t want to waste time,” she said, specifying that Mobilité Infra Québec could “take over” afterwards.
Regarding the timeline, however, Mme Guilbault and Mr. Legault remained vague. “It’s too early to say when it will be finished, but we want to do it as quickly as possible. »
The CDPQ proposed to carry out phase 1 by 2030, phase 2 five years later and the last within fifteen years.