The pillars of the future Réseau express métropolitain (REM) in the East will be made of concrete, but the aerial structures will be thinner than those of the REM in the West, promises the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, which will make its vision public architectural project on Wednesday.
In the wake of concerns expressed in recent months about the siting of imposing structures downtown and in the east end of the city, CDPQ Infra worked to refine the architectural design of the project. The first images of the future REM de l’Est were presented to several media on Tuesday.
CDPQ Infra wants to make the aerial structures of the REM de l’Est more elegant than those of the REM de l’Ouest, which will connect Brossard to the west of the island of Montreal via the city center. The decks of the REM de l’Est will be 8.9 meters wide, compared to 10.3 meters for those of the REM de l’Ouest. The catenaries will be arranged on either side of the decks – and not in the center of the rails – in a shell with rounded shapes which will be more aesthetic than the model of the first REM, argues CDPQ Infra.
As for the pillars, they will be made of precast concrete. CDPQ Infra thus rejects the recommendation of the committee of experts which, in a progress report just submitted to the Quebec government, called for the use of steel pillars to improve the aesthetics of aerial structures. It should be remembered that this committee, made up of 15 experts and led by engineer Maud Cohen, expressed numerous concerns about aerial structures equipped with noise barriers and catenaries, which risk creating urban fractures in the neighborhoods crossed by the REM of ‘Is.
Vice-president of corporate affairs at CDPQ Infra, Harout Chitilian maintains that the option of steel pillars was not an option. “Concrete is a much more malleable product, because it can be shaped,” he explained in an interview with the Homework. Concrete also makes it possible to prefabricate several components and assemble them on site, which reduces construction time and inconveniences for the neighbourhoods. Maintenance of concrete structures is also easier, adds Mr. Chitilian.
A distance of 50 meters will separate these pillars, which will have various shapes “to break the monotony” in the sectors deemed relevant.
CDPQ Infra considers that the installation of catenaries is inevitable due to the Quebec climate. But their visual salience will be reduced, argues Harout Chitilian. For their part, the partially opaque noise barriers of four meters which will border the aprons will be necessary for 10% of the network, specifies Mr. Chitilian.
16 km walk
CDPQ Infra’s proposal also provides for the development of a 16-kilometre promenade along the aerial structures, between downtown and Pointe-aux-Trembles. This will include footpaths and cycle paths. “For us, this is an important urban and architectural gesture,” says Mr. Chitilian.
Downtown, this promenade will require the removal of four of the eight lanes of automobile traffic from René-Lévesque Boulevard. “The traffic studies that we have done show that it is feasible,” underlines Mr. Chitilian. A gazebo will also be set up at the corner of rue De Bleury.
The REM de l’Est will revitalize the east of the island, argues CDPQ Infra, which estimates that 70,000 housing units could be built around 6 of the 23 stations of the future network.
Harout Chitilian is of the opinion that with its architectural proposal, CDPQ Infra responds to 80% of the recommendations made by the committee of experts. “We did not wait for the report to be submitted to incorporate their comments,” he said.
However, CDPQ Infra rejected the committee’s request to consider building a tunnel in the Honoré-Beaugrand station sector in order to re-establish a link with the metro’s green line. “An underground solution in this sector is not possible because ultimately it would alter the financial balance of the project and it would increase its cost by 50%,” says Harout Chitilian.
Citizen concerns
The criticisms made by the committee of experts sparked several reactions on Tuesday. “It reassures us to see that there are experts who see the same things as us,” said Catherine Miron, resident of Mercier-Est and member of the REM group and citizens of eastern Montreal. She also notes that the committee was not able to comment on several elements of the project that are not sufficiently developed. “During public consultations, CDPQ Infra provided very little information. So it’s really impossible to get an idea of what’s going on with this project. She sees this as a sign that the project is not mature enough to be submitted to the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement.
Director of the School of Urban Planning at McGill University, Richard Shearmur would have liked the committee of experts not to limit its analysis to the architectural integration of the REM de l’Est, but also to examine the route and on the mode of transport chosen by CDPQ Infra. “It’s a very limited mandate given the scale of the debates surrounding the REM. The big question is: Are we building a network that is relevant and will remain so for the next 50 years? »
For their part, the Minister of the Metropolis, Chantal Rouleau, and the mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante, did not comment on the file on Tuesday.