After three successive postponements, the antenna of the Metropolitan Express Network (REM) linking downtown Montreal to Brossard, on the South Shore of Montreal, will come into operation on July 31, promises the project manager.
Since June 28, cars of the green and white automated light metro have been circulating without passengers on this first line of the REM at a frequency similar to the service that will soon be in place. “In light of the results obtained during this period of intensive testing, CDPQ Infra is announcing the date of the public opening of the REM between Brossard and Gare Centrale stations on July 31,” indicates the Caisse de dépôt subsidiary and placement of Quebec responsible for the project, in a press release issued Friday morning.
In recent weeks, the light rail, which will connect downtown Montreal to Brossard in 18 minutes, has been subjected to a series of simulations, such as a fire and electrical problems. “The dry run will continue over the next few days, which will allow the teams to make the final adjustments to provide an optimal customer experience,” adds CDPQ Infra.
First announced for the summer of 2022, the commissioning of the first five REM stations has been postponed twice to be then set for the spring of 2023. “There will be no third postponement”, had moreover stated at the end of April the vice-president of operations and responsible for the operation phase of the REM, Denis Andlauer, as part of a visit to the facilities of the Brossard light rail station. The commissioning of the light metro was thus to take place no later than June 21. However, this was later delayed again, with some tests still to be carried out before allowing the new mode of public transport to accommodate passengers.
“Excellent news for mobility in greater Montreal,” reacted Friday the Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Geneviève Guilbault, in reference to the unveiling of the start date of the REM on the South Shore, which will be in operation every day of the week for 20 hours.
Excellent news for mobility in Greater Montreal, opening of the first branch of the REM on July 31! https://t.co/Zw5IL4PTCc
— Geneviève Guilbault (@GGuilbaultCAQ) July 7, 2023
noise barriers
By e-mail, CDPQ Infra also confirms that it has begun the design of noise barriers in order to respond to the concerns raised in particular by residents of Griffintown and Île-des-Soeurs who are inconvenienced by the noise repercussions of the empty passage of the light rail in last weeks.
“We are very sensitive to the situation reported by all local residents. We take the file very seriously; we must consider the problem and make improvements,” said REM public affairs director Virginie Cousineau, the project manager, saying that she was dissatisfied “with the current situation in several sectors.”
CDPQ Infra also indicates that “dynamic absorbers” will be installed “immediately” over a distance of 240 meters along the REM route “in order to test their effectiveness”, while other installations of this type have been pre-ordered “to cover all the problematic sectors”, indicates Mme Cousineau.
“Our goal is to arrive with the details of the analyses, solutions and their deployment schedule before the commissioning” of the REM on the South Shore of Montreal, she adds.
Ultimately, the REM will total 67 km and 26 stations linking downtown Montreal to the South Shore, Deux-Montagnes, the West Island of Montreal and Montreal-Trudeau airport. The bill for the project is estimated at $6.9 billion.