By filing its energy sobriety plan at the beginning of October, France announced a subsidy program of 100 euros per year ($135) for each person registered on a carpooling platform. A possible solution to deal with the congestion caused by the partial closure of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel over the next three years?
Posted at 12:00 a.m.
The context is very different. France was forced to adopt an energy sobriety plan in order to reduce its energy consumption, in the context of the war in Ukraine and the shortage of fuel. Subsidies for carpooling are just one of the many measures deployed by the French government to significantly reduce energy consumption in France.
Such a solution in Quebec could nevertheless prove to be “really interesting,” says Pierre-Olivier Pineau, professor at HEC Montreal and holder of the Chair in Energy Sector Management. “If we have subsidies to give, it would be much better to do so for carpooling than for the purchase of electric vehicles that will pile up in traffic jams, when they are not parked waiting for use in a asphalted place. »
A “candy” that could have “positive effects”
According to Florence Junca-Adenot, professor in the department of urban and tourism studies at UQAM, such a “bonbon” of 100 euros (C$135) per person could have “positive effects”. The problem, according to her, is that this should have already been planned to deal with the partial closure of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel. The urban mobility specialist estimates that such a tax measure could apply for the entire duration of the work in the tunnel, i.e. for a period of three years.
PHOTO DENIS GERMAIN, ARCHIVES SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The partial closure of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel is causing a lot of headaches for motorists.
Carpooling is one of the solutions that can be considered, even if the gains are likely to be “relatively limited”, according to Pierre Barrieau, mobility consultant and lecturer in urban planning at the University of Montreal. Local carpooling, to get to work, is generally not a very widespread option in Quebec, he notes.
Last Wednesday, Michel Leblanc, President of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal (CCMM), declared that we must “limit access [au tunnel Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine] during peak hours: only carpooling, public transport and trucks. No solo car during these periods.
Mr. Leblanc says he does not wish to set up a subsidy program for carpooling for the time being. He believes that employers are in the best position to offer carpooling solutions to their employees, pointing out that companies like Bombardier and Pratt & Whitney already have such programs in place.
Carpooling project under study by the ARTM
A carpooling project is being studied by the Regional Metropolitan Transport Authority (ARTM) to encourage users to favor this mode of transport, according to Louis-André Bertrand, spokesperson for the Ministry of Transport and Mobility. sustainable. It does not specify, however, whether such a project would include financial incentives for motorists.
There are already carpooling platforms that have been established for several years, such as Netlift or Poparide. Mr. Bertrand specifies that “communications will be made to encourage this mode of travel, in particular with companies, which can in turn encourage their employees to group together to travel”.