The REM de l’Est project will have to be “properly assessed” before moving forward, says Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, at a time when the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) is challenging question this new section of the Caisse de depot’s electric train.
Posted at 10:08 a.m.
“The REM is the most important public transport project for a decade and it must be assessed in due form”, indeed hammered the mayor in a statement sent by her cabinet, at the start of the day on Tuesday.
His administration intends to “ask that the opinion produced by the ARTM” be presented to him and “take the time to analyze it”. “The REM project must contribute to the development of the mobility offer in the metropolitan region, to the development of the territory and to strengthen the public transport network in a global way”, insists the entourage of Mr.me Plant.
She recalls having already presented her “winning conditions to make it the best project” and ensures that she does everything to “make them come true”. “Today, a committee of experts does its work independently and rigorously,” she also points out, referring to the group of specialists created by Quebec last May to ensure the architectural integration of the project.
Tuesday, The Press revealed a devastating opinion from the ARTM, which concluded that options other than the REM de l’Est should be considered, as this new section of the electric train has many disadvantages, in particular the low number of trips (12%) intended for downtown.
In a brief update Tuesday morning, the director general of the ARTM, Benoit Gendron, indicated that “the final decisions will belong to the government”. However, he confirmed “that in the light of the findings that emerge from our analyses, we suggest considering options that would allow a project that would be better anchored” with the other transport networks already in place, “as well as a better match between travel needs, the urban areas crossed, the mode proposed and the investment costs”.
Disagreements to settle
Valérie Plante, she confirms having met last Friday with representatives of the Legault government and CDPQ-Infra. She would then have reiterated her “three conditions for the success of the project”, namely the City’s right to speak in the integration of the project, a separate component for urban development and guaranteed funding to make it a reality. The City says “count on the support and collaboration of the Government of Quebec to ensure that all partners work together to achieve the best possible project”.
In Quebec, the Minister for Transport and responsible for the Metropolis, Chantal Rouleau, said she was surprised by the situation. “We think that the ARTM must redo its homework,” she argued, assuring that “the project is moving forward” despite everything.
CDPQ Infra, for its part, says that it was “in no way included in the process of preparing and drafting the report” of the ARTM while it “works a lot” with this organization and “meets it on a regular basis”. . “We were notified on Thursday. We will take the time to respond to each of the elements, point by point, ”assured the communications manager, Jean-Vincent Lacroix.
With Tommy Chouinard