Last week, CDPQ Infra unveiled new sketches showing the substantial progress of the architectural work carried out since the announcement of the REM de l’Est project more than a year ago.
Posted at 12:00 p.m.
However, under the polished visual renderings, several gray areas remain in relation to the overall vision, and many questions formulated, mainly those that fall within the province of Quebec, are still unanswered.
The structure is refined, the road network is reviewed with the removal of four lanes on René-Lévesque and one lane on Sherbrooke, the deployment of cycle paths places the project in a more integrated vision of mobility, the treatment of wires is improved , noise and vibration management is better considered.
In the world of overhead trains, and especially with regard to the architectural blunders of the REM de l’Ouest, CDPQ Infra is heading in the right direction. However, we remain skeptical about the choice of mode and the balance between needs and investments.
In 2020, when initially announced, the project was valued at $10 billion. While inflation has already taken 500 million from the project, while Montreal has promised to add an additional 500 million, while the Prime Minister has declared an openness to injecting money into the project and while requests to bury the structure on larger parts of the route are still on the table, one can question the current magnitude of the costs of the project.
If, initially, the government judged that the price of the superior speed of the REM was worth the candle at 10 billion for 37 km, from when would we be better off turning to less expensive solutions?
The government must unveil its cost-benefit analysis, because at the price of the SRB Pie-IX, approximately 200 km of rapid bus service (SRB) can be built with 10 billion dollars and, between the two, technologies of tram-train are also possible.
The Strategic Plan for the Development of Public Transit of the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) estimated last year the capital investment needs between 44.7 and 56.6 billion dollars by 2035 to achieve the targets. of sustainable mobility in Greater Montreal. Is it really reasonable to devote around 20% of this sum to the REM in the East alone?
While some have expressed concern that the REM will steal passengers from existing lines and speak of cannibalization, we are more concerned about a lack of resources to cover the necessary increase in the capacity of our networks, with a view to a rapid shift to achieve our climate commitments.
In terms of benefits, the CDPQ’s presentation now speaks of “nearly 8,000 fewer motorists”. Since the ARTM has calculated that 210,000 automobile transports must be removed or avoided per day by 2035, how will the government’s strategy lead us to a good destination?
Knowing the coherent vision of public transport, the reduction of GHG emissions in Quebec and the development of the East is part of the REM is an absolute necessity. The government must make its detailed vision known.
With such a controversial file, without sufficient data today to convince us and allow us to explain that the choices that have been made are consistent, we are increasingly worried about going to a consultation with the Bureau des audiences publiques on the environment (BAPE) this spring.
Under these conditions, we fear that the debate will be a heartbreaking one, made up essentially of professions of faith and partisan rants. For the future of the East and Montreal, let’s give ourselves a few more months to bring together the necessary elements to have a real, documented and transparent conversation.