Mayors of the Montreal region are worried about the future of public transportation following the tabling of the 2024 budget by François Legault’s government. According to Mayor Valérie Plante, the amounts announced represent cuts of $400 million.
“We cannot say that the choices that have been made will meet the needs,” commented the mayor on Wednesday during the weekly meeting of the executive committee. “The disappointment in this budget is definitely at the level of the sums which, we would have liked, [auraient dû être] allocated for public transportation. But in this case, we are talking more about a cut of 400 million to maintain assets. We haven’t seen this kind of disengagement in public transport since 2013. It makes us fear the worst. »
Valérie Plante recognized that it was legitimate to aim for optimization of services. She also recalled that last year, the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) made savings of nearly $80 million. “This time, this 400 million cut scares us. It will be the adoption of our budgets next fall and we will see how it will align. »
Fears of the ARTM
For 2025, the Regional Metropolitan Transport Authority (ARTM) forecasts a shortfall of 561.3 million and fears it will have to make significant cuts if no solution is found in the coming months.
For their part, the mayors of the metropolitan region fear having to “star in the same film” as in 2023 even though they had tried, as early as May, to initiate discussions with the government on the subject of financing the public transport, but without success. On the eve of the adoption of the respective budgets of their cities last fall, elected officials launched a cry from the heart by evoking the possibility of imposing significant service cuts, including the closure of the metro at 11 p.m.
For its part, the Quebec Urban Transport Association (ATUQ), which brings together transport companies across Quebec, called last month for a five-year financial framework. “The maintenance deficit has real impacts on the reliability of the service and the customer experience, because this often results in an increase in breakdowns and an increase in operating costs for all our members,” warned the president through interim of the ATUQ, Geneviève Héon.
Further details will follow.