Valérie Plante said she was reassured by the financial commitments of the Quebec government for the work related to the REM de l’Est on Thursday, but still regrets that the City of Montreal does not have any power in the project.
Posted at 12:50 p.m.
“We have to be around the decision-making table,” reiterated the mayor on the sidelines of a press briefing. “I’m not talking about the color of the brick, I’m not talking about what artwork you put where, I’m not talking about landscaping,” but in a voice over layout plan and integration urban, she said.
She makes it a “winning condition” for the project to receive her support.
Tuesday, The Press revealed that the organizations that manage Montreal’s public transit took a dim view of the arrival of the REM de l’Est. In response, CDPQ Infra pushed the mayor against the wall, asking her to support the project or give up on it. Prime Minister François Legault went in the same direction.
Mme Plante repeated that she wanted “structuring transport for the east end of Montreal”, but insists that the current project can be improved.
She revealed that her office had been informed the day before of a “major” route change announced last month (4.5 kilometers transferred from Sherbrooke East to Souligny).
“It’s tangible proof that we’re not at the decision-making table,” she said. We have to be around the decision-making table. I know that the CDPQ said that we are on six committees. These are advisory committees in which we participate with great interest and energy. But I am talking about a decision-making committee. »