Montreal plan prioritizes public transportation

Following the Canadian Urban Transit Association's (CUTA) 2009 Conference in Montréal from Nov. 7 to 11, 2009, Mayor Manon Barbe, the Montréal Executive Committee responsible for transportation and Majority Leader Marvin Rotrand announced the submission of a resolution to the December 14 city council meeting in support of CUTA's Transit Vision 2040.

"By submitting this resolution to City Council members, we want to ensure that all elected officials confirm their support for the development of public transit and active transportation on behalf of Montréal residents from the very beginning of this new term of office," said Marvin Rotrand. "By endorsing this resolution, which was drafted in conjunction with CUTA, Montréal is placing the development of mass transit at the top of its concerns and is seeking increased funding to better ensure the creation of public transit services and infrastructure."

Said CUTA President/CEO Michael Roschlau: "CUTA consulted widely to produce Transit Vision 2040. It sought input from eminent Canadians including former provincial premiers, former federal cabinet ministers, economists, academics, journalists and scientists."

With the adoption of its Transportation Plan, Montréal introduced an imaginative approach to reinventing the metropolis by making public transit the preferred form of human transportation. Twenty-one megaprojects have been proposed and other programs are underway despite the city's tight budgetary resources.

Because of such efforts, Societe de Transport de Montreal (STM) services have been significantly upgraded, resulting in a 4.1 percent ridership increase for 2008. The city has also made major strides in the field of active transportation by extending its bike path system and rolling out BIXI, its self-service bike system.

Studies are also underway to install a tramway system, create a rail shuttle between downtown Montréal and Trudeau airport, build an eastern extension to the subway system and redesign the Bonaventure Highway.

The 21 megaprojects listed in Montréal's Transportation Plan represent total capital expenditures of $ 5.1 billion over 10 years.