The Legault government did not want to say on Tuesday whether or not its Quebec-Lévis tunnel project was in contradiction with the new National Policy on Architecture and Land Use Planning unveiled on Monday.
Asked about this on his arrival at the Blue Salon, the Minister of Transport, François Bonnardel, left without answering.
But the opposition returned to the charge during question period. “The policy emphasizes the importance of densification; the Minister of Transport says it’s a fad. She talks about the importance of public transport while the CAQ slows down the tramway [de Québec] while advancing the third link,” denounced the MNA for Vaudreuil, Marie-Claude Nichols. “It’s not an electoral gesture because for the CAQ, land use planning is like the environment, they pack it down as soon as it doesn’t suit them. »
On Monday, the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, unveiled her National Policy on Architecture and Land Use Planning, which emphasizes the need to “limit” urban sprawl. However, the tunnel project between Quebec-Lévis has been criticized from all sides since its inception for the sprawl it risks causing.
In response to questions from the opposition, Minister Laforest replied Tuesday that she was “very proud” of her policy and the support she had received, but this, without mentioning the third link. When Liberal leader Andrée Fortin relaunched her on the tunnel, she wouldn’t say if it “fit in with her policy.”
“When we talk about urban sprawl, we always say: is it urban sprawl or regional development? […] Yes, we will continue to have projects, but our projects will be better thought out”.
Earlier in the day, Québec solidaire had also deplored the limits of the new policy in a press release. “We’ve been waiting for this policy for four years and it misses the problem: municipal taxation,” argued the deputy for Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Alexandre Leduc. The latter, he added, “is completely outdated and […] encourages municipalities to do urban sprawl”.