Achi news desk-
Montreal REM officials have confirmed that the lines to the West Island and North Shore are delayed and won’t open until 2025.
The Deux-Montagnes and Anse-Ã -l’Orme stations were supposed to open in 2024, but on Wednesday Charles Amond, president and CEO of CDPQ, and Jean-Marc Arbeau, president and CEO of CDPQ Infra, said the opening dates are pushed back.
The delays were first reported by Radio-Canada on Wednesday.
When asked by MNAs in the Quebec legislature earlier in the day, Philippe Bettany, senior vice-president of public affairs, communications and strategy at CDPQ Infra, would only say, “The only thing I can say is that it won’t be in 2024.”
A builder of the light rail system has blamed complex work on the Mount Royal tunnel. It is still trying to renew century-old infrastructure and add 600 kilometers of power lines.
“The first criteria for me are the safety of the system and the reliability of the system. If they need more time to do more tests of the system before it works, I think that’s the right thing to do,” said Genevieve Guilbeau. Minister of Transport of Quebec.
REM’s first branch opened last July, but it arrived after multiple delays and a hefty price tag. The latest estimate put it at nearly $8 billion — $1.6 billion more than the original cost.
The opposition in Quebec City put the REM builder in the hot seat.
“You can have a great plan, but if you don’t execute properly, you’ll have problems — that’s where we are,” Frédéric Beauchamp, a member of Quebec’s Liberal Party executive board.
“Is CDPQ Infra the right player for the development of collective transport?” asked Parti Québécois MNA Joël Arsenault.
With several breakdowns and delays in the trip, the opposition fears that some people will not make it.
“It doesn’t inspire confidence and it’s a shame and it’s a big problem,” said Alexandre Leduc of Quebec Solidaire.
Technical tests on the new lines should begin in the coming weeks.
