Cornered by significant operating deficits, Quebec’s urban transport companies are urging the Prime Minister and the heavyweights in his cabinet to “have more ambition in terms of public transport”, at a time when the government is considering paying off 20% of a shortfall estimated at $2.5 billion over the next five years.
“Today, we are calling on the Premier of Quebec as well as [Eric] Girard, Minister of Finance,” indicated the president of the Capital Transport Network, Maude Mercier-Larouche, during a press scrum held in Quebec City following the forum on sustainable mobility policy.
“For us, it is unthinkable to think about service cuts. We do not want to level down,” insisted the elected official from Quebec, recalling that “85%, even 90%” of the operating costs of transport companies are linked to the provision of services to the population. “If we cut, it is necessarily a bit like saying that we are sawing off the branch that supports us. »
The Minister of Transport, Geneviève Guilbault, has sowed disarray within cities and transport companies by mentioning a government contribution capped at 20% to cushion the deficits of transport companies.
Have sustainable financing
Friday, the Quebec Urban Transport Association (ATUQ) requested that other ministers speak to participate in discussions and “give a helping hand to Mme Guilbault in his efforts.”
“She represents transportation companies very well with the government,” said ATUQ president Marc Denault. But perhaps there is a lack of other players who could intervene in the public arena, among others the Ministers of the Economy, Pierre Fitzgibbon, and of the Environment, Benoit Charette. »
Other members of the cabinet must contribute to the reflection on the financing of public transport, believes the ATUQ, to “ensure sustainable financing and avoid having this same meeting every year”.
In a 25-minute speech delivered at the opening of the forum on Friday, and without the aid of any notes, Minister Guilbault did not announce any improvement to her initial offer. “I don’t want to negotiate in public forums,” she insisted. The minister, however, recognized that the current funding model no longer holds up.
“Currently, we finance our collective transport projects and our road projects with the FORT (Land Transport Network Fund)”, an envelope filled by “registrations, driving licenses and fuel taxes which are expected to decrease as we electrify our vehicles,” she enumerated. “Mathematically, there is an issue that arises. »
Think about it…again?
The reflection continues within her cabinet, indicated the minister. Why think again when Geneviève Guilbault’s predecessor in transport, François Bonnardel, had already carried out the exercise? asks the solidarity deputy for Taschereau, Etienne Grandmont.
“The former minister had held a consultation and there were plenty of interesting avenues that could have been put forward to find new sources of funding,” said the supportive elected official. The minister has decided to shelve this report and hold another consultation. She undoubtedly heard that companies are no longer able to do this and that the model needs to be completely reviewed… then she decided to reduce the government’s contribution. It is nothing more and nothing less than an announcement that there will be cuts to public transit services. »
The minister repeated that no government before hers had invested such large sums in public transportation. “There is a part of the federal government that she never names either,” replied the supportive MP.
Beyond these investments in public transport infrastructure, transport companies are also calling for a change in philosophy in government.
“We must know how to consider infrastructures and their use as a whole, otherwise we find ourselves in a world where the government builds and companies operate,” illustrates Eric Alan Caldwell, chairman of the board of directors of the Société de transport de Montréal (STM ). The message that this sends is that those who want to reach the full potential of their infrastructure, to provide more buses and more frequency, find themselves with a heavier operational burden to assume. On the contrary, good behavior must be rewarded. »