Pie-IX Bus Rapid Transit – An investment of nearly $395 million

MONTRÉAL, June 1, 2018 – The Government of Québec is moving forward with the implementation of the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain’s (ARTM) Pie-IX Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project. Construction work will begin this fall.

The work will be integrated with the Ville de Montréal’s rehabilitation of underground municipal infrastructure and redevelopment of the boulevard. The Government of Québec is also announcing that it will go ahead with the major repairs to the Pie-IX bridge.

The announcement was made today by André Fortin, Minister of Transport, Sustainable Mobility and Transport Electrification. He was accompanied by Rita de Santis, MNA for Bourassa-Sauvé, Éric Alan Caldwell, the member of the Ville de Montréal’s executive committee responsible for urban planning, transit and Montréal’s office of public consultation, and Éric Morasse, city councillor for the Saint-François district.

The Pie-IX BRT project involves the establishment of permanent reserved lanes for high-level service, allowing buses to run on Pie-IX Boulevard between Saint-Martin Boulevard in Laval and the Pie-IX metro station in Montréal. The 11 km route will have 17 stations (2 in Laval and 15 in Montréal) and a 750-space commuter parking lot at the terminal station in Laval.

The total cost of the project is estimated at $393.8 million, including $364.2 million for infrastructure and $29.6 million for the acquisition of the additional buses required by the Montréal and Laval transit authorities.

The proximity and overlap of the timelines for the BRT and the Ville de Montréal’s construction work led to the creation of an integrated project office that will ensure that all planning and engineering work for the two projects is grouped together and managed by one team. The government also intends to link work on the Pie-IX bridge to the BRT and Ville de Montréal timelines so that the Pie-IX BRT is fully functional when deployed in 2022.

Quotes:

With the establishment of the Pie-IX BRT and the Blue Line extension announced a few weeks ago, the Government of Québec is confirming its commitment to action aimed at better serving the people of East Montréal and the North Shore. The Pie-IX BRT project will concretely improve the quality of life of its users by offering a fast bus service that is efficient, reliable, comfortable and safe.

– André Fortin, Minister of Transport, Sustainable Mobility and Transport Electrification

In addition to improving public transit on Pie-IX Boulevard, user mobility will also be increased as a result of the Pie-IX BRT’s connection to the metro’s Green Line and to the Montréal-Nord-Saint-Michel station on the Mascouche suburban train line. In addition, it should be remembered that the Pie-IX BRT will eventually connect to the metro’s extended Blue Line. The Pie-IX BRT is another great example of our commitment to sustainable mobility.

– Martin Coiteux, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Land Occupancy, Minister of Public Security and Minister responsible for the Montréal region

The start of work on the Pie-IX BRT this fall and the progress of the Pie-IX bridge reconstruction project are excellent news for Laval residents. Two BRT stations and a 750-space commuter parking lot will be built in the Laval area, offering an attractive new option for travel to Montréal. It should also be noted that the Pie-IX bridge will have a southbound reserved lane, allowing direct access to the Montréal section of the reserved lane and improved travel times for everyone who chooses to use public transit.

– Francine Charbonneau, Minister responsible for Seniors and Anti-Bullying and Minister responsible for the Laval region

We have seen the gradually increasing importance of mobility in recent years with the proliferation of projects and investments in this area. The Pie-IX Bus Rapid Transit is one of our government’s many initiatives to reduce the time we spend on the road. In my riding of Bourassa-Sauvé, this project will have a direct impact on the quality of life of North Montrealers, especially with the extension of the metro’s Blue Line and the major repairs to the Pie-IX bridge.  I can only welcome these announcements that confirm our willingness to work on responding to the population’s real concerns.

– Rita de Santis, MNA for Bourassa-Sauvé

 This long-awaited project will improve the mobility of residents and residents of Montréal’s eastern neighbourhoods. Mobility is at the heart of our administration’s concerns, and this project meets our goals of increasing mobility, as well as our economic and social development objectives. The Ville de Montréal will also take advantage of this project to redevelop Pie-IX Boulevard, making it a greener, safer and more user-friendly urban boulevard. The planting of hundreds of trees, the widening of the sidewalks and upgraded lighting are planned. Additional investments of $131 million will also contribute to the vitality of the neighbourhoods that the BRT will pass through, where public transit will occupy an important place.

– Éric Alan Caldwell, member of the Ville de Montréal’s executive committee with responsibility for urban planning, transit and Montréal’s office of public consultation

We enthusiastically welcome this new step in the implementation of the Pie-IX BRT project. The Ville de Laval has been working on the project from the start. The establishment of reserved lanes on this major artery will increase traffic fluidity. Importantly, this project will eventually change the travel habits of residents who will choose to stop commuting alone in order to benefit from the undeniable advantages of public transit.

– Éric Morasse, city councillor for the Saint-François district

Key points:

The Pie-IX BRT will make the following possible:

• An increase in public transit use by 30,000 trips per day
• Wait times similar to the metro
• Increased comfort for public transit users through the construction of bus shelters that can hold one hundred people and that simplify movement on and off of buses
• Better connectivity with the public transit network
• Competitiveness and economic attractiveness of the Pie-IX axis, the Island of Montréal’s second most important public transit axis and the largest public transit corridor east of the Montréal metro’s Orange Line
• The potential development of several projects centred on public transit, both in Laval and Montréal

Related links:

• Pie-IX BRT project: srbpieix.ca.
• Pie-IX bridge project: www.transports.gouv.qc.ca.