While in Montreal on Friday, the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Geneviève Guilbault, reiterated that the Quebec government had no intention of absorbing 75% of the deficits of transport companies, as requested by the mayors of the Montreal region. According to her, transport companies should tighten their spending before considering closing the metro at 11 p.m. and reducing services.
The day after the joint outing of the mayors of the Metropolitan Community of Montreal (CMM) for better funding for Quebec in public transport, Minister Guilbault pleaded in favor of optimization measures for transport companies. “I have nothing to do with the decisions and operations [des sociétés de transport]. It’s all handled elsewhere. But there, when there is a deficit, I am expected to pay 75% of it,” she said during a press briefing following a meeting of partners of Mobilité Montréal.
The minister wondered where the government should take the money requested by the cities. “In the accommodation? In public services? In public health? »
Geneviève Guilbault argued that the government was already amply paying its share in public transport, particularly in the extension of the blue metro line “which will cost a fortune” and the tramway in Quebec.
“There is a need to be efficient, to examine ourselves, to perhaps review the way of managing all of this because we cannot forever ask the government for money and put billions into it. “infinity in public transportation,” she said.
The dialogue with the cities has not broken off and discussions will continue, but time is starting to run out, because the cities must finalize their budgets soon. The Press revealed Friday morning that Quebec was preparing to improve its offer by proposing to increase its aid from 150 million to more than 200 million for 2024.
Remember that last week, the minister indicated that Quebec would limit its contribution to 20% aimed at absorbing the projected deficit of $2.5 billion over five years for Quebec’s public transport companies.