The mayor of Quebec, Bruno Marchand, is not at all shaken by the 2% drop in support for the tramway project, which has fallen from 44% to 42% since the last Léger poll conducted five years ago. month.
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“Me, it takes nothing away from my determination”, he reacted Monday, in the wake of the unveiling of the results of a new probe carried out on behalf of the City among 500 residents of Quebec, at the end of October. Mayor Marchand had promised to do this exercise three times a year.
“The support rate is stable overall (42%), as well as in each of the six boroughs,” observes the vice-president of Léger in Quebec, Cyntia Darisse.
“For me, the objective does not change”, insists Mr. Marchand, judging that the support “is maintained. »
“We give ourselves 18 months. That’s what we said last February. We continue to work on social acceptability, explain, hear, discuss, dialogue. Is this the end? No way. We continue. The result would have been different and we would have continued. »
One in two people are against
This time, 50% of respondents said they were opposed to the project. This proportion was 51% in May and 52% last January. The undecided rate is 8%.
The mayor still hopes to reverse the trend and reach the 50% support mark before the major project, which is due to begin next year.
Among those who support the project, 51% believe that it will make mobility more efficient, while 33% consider it important to invest more in public transit.
On the other hand, among the opponents, 63% believe that the tramway is not the right mode of transport or that buses are sufficient, then 39% consider the project too expensive.
The mayor was also delighted with the results of another poll published on our pages this weekend, which indicated that 55% of the 500 respondents considered that the tramway project was “good” for the city center of Quebec.
The methodology and the question were different, however, the opposition noted, urging caution in comparisons.
Mixed effect of Tom Tramway
Since support for the tramway has dropped slightly, should we deduce that the publicity offensive carried out by the City in recent weeks with a fictitious radio presenter, Tom Tramway, has not had the expected effects?
“I can’t tell you,” replied the mayor, refusing to venture into this field.
The leader of the opposition, Claude Villeneuve, for his part criticized the format of these advertisements with “little men” and he does not believe that Tom Tramway could have had any influence in public opinion.
However, he criticizes the mayor for having “linked the destiny of the tramway” to a series of polls. It is an “excessively dangerous” path, he opines.
Totally agree 42%
totally disagree 50%
Don’t know/Don’t answer 8%
Support rate in the boroughs
- Sainte-Foy–Sillery–Cap-Rouge: 58%
- The City-Limoilou: 56%
- The rivers : 40%
- Upper Saint-Charles: 36%
- Charlesbourg: 30 %
- Beauport: 26%
Source: Survey conducted with 500 residents of Quebec City, from the Léger web panel, from October 28 to 31, 2022.
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