Quebec is injecting an additional $19 million into the repair of the railway line between Matapédia and Gaspé. This sum is in addition to the 100 million already invested since the beginning of 2020 to give a makeover to this section in bad shape, where the last passenger train ran almost 10 years ago.
The Ministère des Transports has entered into an agreement with the Société du chemin de fer de la Gaspésie (SCFG), the current operator of the railway line that crisscrosses the south of the peninsula, with the aim of accelerating the rehabilitation of the section. Many are impatiently awaiting the return of passenger trains to the peninsula, where some lament that the car is queen and mistress.
For the time being, only freight trains are using the track, which has become impassable between Caplan and Gaspé due to the advanced decay of the rails. However, major work began this year, notably the replacement of decks and sleepers, the installation of rails and ballast or the repair of the Port-Daniel-Gascons railway bridge.
The complete rehabilitation of the 325 km of railway lines is a “major and priority project” for the Ministry of Transport. Earlier in November, he launched a call for interest for the repair of the section linking Port-Daniel-Gascons and Gaspé, where the challenges linked to the erosion of the coast are inflating the bill.
On this 127 km route prone to landslides, the track follows white sand for 15 km, some parts of which are now submerged. At least 25 bridges and culverts require major rehabilitation work and five retaining walls must be erected, according to the call for interest, which provides that the construction site will cost from 248 to 355 million dollars.
In 2020, the government has set aside $235 million to complete the initial phases of the rehabilitation. The government expects rail traffic between Caplan and Port-Daniel to resume in 2024.
The ministry is waiting to find out which companies are interested in carrying out the work between Port-Daniel and Gaspé before establishing a timetable for this section. For the moment, the call for interest foresees the start of the construction site for 2023.