Allison Hanes: Legault and Plante come together in new vision for REM de l’Est


Both Legault and Plante get to claim victory as transit planning in Montreal becomes even more politicized.

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Since they were both elected, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante and Quebec Premier François Legault have outlined competing visions for public transit that often seemed to be on a collision course.

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Plante’s signature promise when she first ran for mayor in 2017 was a new Pink Line of the métro, a $6-billion project cutting a diagonal from the underserved northeast to the southwest. But it was dismissed as a pie-in-the-sky idea once the Coalition Avenir Québec government came to power a year later.

Legault has long been determined to maximize the economic potential of the vacant industrial lands in the east end and bring public transit to the only two ridings his party won on the Island of Montreal. After initially proposing a tramway, he enlisted the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec to draft plans for a second phase of its still-under-construction electric train network. The $10-billion REM de l’Est emerged seemingly out of the blue in December 2019.

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Since Legault holds the purse strings, he appeared to have the upper hand in determining which project would move forward. But as experts raised concerns about ugly concrete pillars along René-Lévesque Blvd. downtown and residents mobilized to denounce the social acceptability of the elevated tracks looming over their homes, Legault’s pet project hit some major speed bumps.

This allowed Plante, though frozen out of CDPQ-Infra’s decision-making process, to flex some muscle — mainly by withholding a ringing endorsement for the REM de l’est, pending improvements. It was a bit of a gamble. Not many majors would hesitate before snapping up a $10-billion investment in public transit, no matter how flawed. There have been times she’s been under immense pressure to give her full support — or wear the blame if the biggest transportation project in Quebec history fell through.

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But after intense backroom discussions, Legault and Plante’s transit visions have converged.

At a news conference where the two leaders heaped praise on each other, they announced that CDPQ Infra is out as the project manager. (Well, the pension fund is taking its ball and going home after handing over its homework). Now in the driver’s seat are the Quebec transportation ministry, the city, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain and the Société de transport de Montréal.

Legault and Plante unveiled some major modifications, most notably the amputation of the controversial downtown portion from Central Station to Dickson St. The north-south leg to Collège Marie Victorin in Montreal North will be maintained and maybe even extended to Laval. The east-west trajectory will continue all the way to Rivière-Prairie-Pointe-Aux-Trembles, with Legault saying a connection to the Lanaudière region is on the table.

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So who are the winners and losers of this merged transit vision between frenemies?

Politically, both Legault and Plante get to claim victory. The premier can go into the upcoming election without the REM de l’Est hopelessly stalled. He has also given a crucial project to Montreal a more regional scope.

Plante, who in the past has tried to portray the REM de l’Est as a partial implementation of her Pink Line, slipped in a reference during Monday’s news conference. She has secured a record investment in public transit, while demonstrating her clout of her.

The ARTM, which had been sidelined by the Caisse as the regional transportation planning body, is now back in charge. But it has been put on notice that it had better be able to deliver. Legault said he will not accept “excuses” for delays and warned that he will “replace” anyone who doesn’t get the job done. So a body created to take politics out of the process now faces some pretty intense scrutiny from the top. Transit planning seems as political as ever in greater Montreal.

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CDPQ Infra must just be relieved it has been freed from an albatross that wasn’t its idea in the first place so it can consolidate its efforts elsewhere.

Montrealers’ response to this latest version of the REM de l’Est may well depend on where they live. Long neglected residents of Montreal North and St-Léonard, where the tracks are slated to go underground, will benefit, as will citizens in far-flung RDP-PAT.

Caught in the middle are citizens of Montreal’s Mercier district, where the elevated tracks still threaten to cast a long shadow. Legault and Plante promised to ensure the REM de l’Est integrates better into the neighbourhood. But given how tough it’s been to find a compromise so far, local interests risk getting steamrolled.

Instead of dying a slow death, the REM de l’Est now has new political momentum from heavyweight backers.

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