Public transit users in Montreal and the North Shore will have to be patient before boarding a Réseau express métropolitain (REM) car, since problems with the Mount Royal tunnel are delaying the commissioning of the most stations by the end of 2024.
In a press release published Monday morning, CDPQ Infra — which is leading the light rail project — confirmed that the commissioning of the branch linking the South Shore to downtown Montreal was maintained for next fall, but that all the other stations would not see the light of day before the end of 2024. The date of commissioning of the branch going to Pierre-Elliott-Trudeau airport should be unveiled next fall.
Instead of opening in three phases between fall 2023 and fall 2024, 18 of the 26 stations — located downtown, in the west of Montreal and on the North Shore — will welcome their first users simultaneously end of 2024, according to the most recent REM estimates.
In an interview given to Montreal Journalthe Caisse acknowledged that the delays will lead to increased costs, and that the most recent estimate of $6.9 billion will not be met.
This is not the first time that challenges posed by the Mount Royal tunnel have caused delays in the delivery of the project. In November 2020, CDPQ Infra held a press conference to announce that unforeseen events in the tunnel, in addition to challenges related to COVID-19, forced a first postponement.
The workers had then found explosive residues which had complicated the work, which added to the general conditions of deterioration of the century-old tunnel, particularly under McGill College Street.
In light of this observation, CDPQ Infra has redesigned its work schedule in order to make its entire network operational — except for the airport portion — before the end of 2024. The car test sequence has been reviewed, but could start before summer 2024 in the tunnel. Trials for the branch between Montreal and the South Shore are already underway.
CDPQ Infra also indicated that if the sequence providing for the commissioning of stations from south to north had been maintained, the REM would not have reached Deux-Montagnes before 2026.
The REM team also pointed out that discussions are underway with the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) and Mobilité Montréal to maintain the mitigation measures put in place with the complete closure of the exo Deux-Montagnes line. and obstacles related to the exo Mascouche line. These two commuter train lines used the Mount Royal tunnel before it was closed.