(Quebec) The opposition does not believe François Legault when he says he does not know the estimated cost of his new sub-river link project reserved for public transport between Quebec and Lévis. The Prime Minister, who is an accountant by training, lacks rigor or makes fun of the population, it is said.
The thorny issue of the third link in the National Capital Region has stuck with the Legault government for days. At opposition press briefings on Thursday, opponents of the Coalition avenir Québec (CAQ) once again criticized Mr. Legault, who said the day before that he had not seen any unredacted version of the studies detailing the cost of its new public transport project.
According to PQ MP Joël Arseneau, “either the Prime Minister is showing an absolutely aberrant lack of rigor, or he is making fun of us,” he said.
“I cannot conceive that the Prime Minister, in the performance of his duties, with the current crisis affecting his caucus, [nous dit] that he didn’t do his basic homework to look behind the redaction […]. I find that inconceivable,” added Mr. Arseneau.
Étienne Grandmont, député de Québec solidaire (QS) dans la circonscription de Taschereau, au centre-ville de Québec, doute également de la sincérité de François Legault.
« Je trouve ça absolument renversant. […] I just can’t believe it. I cannot believe that the premier of Quebec, in his meeting with his chief of staff and Geneviève Guilbault, when they decided to abandon the third link for another [projet]I can’t believe the issue of cost hasn’t been addressed,” he said.
Selon Frédéric Beauchemin, du Parti libéral du Québec (PLQ), « on ne peut pas penser faire des promesses sans avoir pris le temps de faire les analyses, pris le temps de faire les calculs [et] to have all the data.
“It’s worrying because it shows something else that seems to have been the CAQ’s way of doing business for a while: it’s a little messy,” he said.
“Me, I don’t believe it. […] It is willful blindness, ”chained his fellow MP Madwa-Nika Cadet.
Last week, the CAQ government abandoned its flagship promise in the Quebec region, namely to build a third highway link between the capital and Lévis, on the South Shore, due to a drop in traffic on existing bridges. , but also due to a strong push in costs.
This broken promise sent shockwaves through the Chaudière-Appalaches region and within the CAQ caucus. In addition to the mayor of Lévis, who clearly showed his dissatisfaction last week, the business community of this region is asking Quebec to reconsider its decision.
Legault persists and signs
For his part, François Legault reiterated that he does not know the estimated cost of his new promise of a tunnel reserved for public transport, even if the figure is in a study made public by his government while being redacted.
“No, I don’t know him,” he said during a press scrum before question period in the Blue Room. He says he didn’t ask. “Because it is a summary estimate,” pleaded the Prime Minister. “And what I want is to see what form public transit will take and what the route will be,” he added, speaking of buses, a metro, “a REM like Montreal” – therefore an automated train – or bus. As for the route, the government repeated that it will be “downtown to downtown”.
There is also a “risk” in revealing an estimated cost, because there will eventually be a call for tenders, argued Mr. Legault. However, it is common to quantify the estimated invoice for a project.
“The possibility” of a tunnel reserved for public transport has been analyzed “briefly” in recent months, and more details are needed before advancing a cost. Despite everything, he makes this project a commitment.
The minister responsible for Chaudière-Appalaches and deputy for Lévis, Bernard Drainville, wants this project to be “in progress” as soon as the next election, in 2026, which would imply placing it on a very fast track rarely seen for such infrastructures.