JOSHUA ALLAN
The 1019 Report

By this time next year – more than nine years after the idea was first proposed – the much-anticipated multi-billion-dollar Réseau express métropolitain train service is expected to be in full service, extending its way to the western tip of the island of Montreal.

The 100-per-cent electrically powered light train, commonly referred to simply by its acronym, the REM, is meant to bolster access to Montreal city centre from the West Island, Longueuil and Laval. Such a project is predicted to reduce about 100,000 tonnes of greenhouse gases per year – something that citizens and elected officials alike can get behind.

But will this project do anything to benefit commuters in Vaudreuil-Soulanges?

Or could it potentially hinder access to public transit in the region by striking an unintended blow to the already beleaguered Exo transport network?

Competing forms of public transit

Worry about the implications for the region was triggered earlier this fall when a report obtained by Radio-Canada indicated that the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) was preparing for the worst as the REM becomes fully operational.

The opening of new REM stations means the ARTM-controlled Exo train will be competing for ridership in some areas, all while facing a deficit of more than $400 million.

The report notes that the ARTM decision-makers deliberated over how it could overcome some of the likely financial losses that would come should commuters choose the REM over the Exo train in areas where both are offered. This included the possibility of cutting services at some of its most distant stations; Mascouche, Candiac and Mont-Saint-Hilaire were among those mentioned.

And the Vaudreuil-Hudson train line, despite being one of Exo’s most frequented lines, was not exempt from these talks of potential cuts. Exo officials had claimed that the REM’s West Island stations could absorb between 15 to 20 per cent of the Exo line’s ridership, resulting in a significant decline in revenue for the service, which is the only commuter line that serves the Vaudreuil-Soulanges region.

The Vaudreuil-Hudson line provides thousands of commuters from municipalities in Vaudreuil-Soulanges and the West Island with a direct route into Montreal’s downtown every day. Starting in Hudson, the line makes stops in Vaudreuil-Dorion and Île Perrot, and at nine stations in the West Island en route to the city centre.

Data from Exo provided to The 1019 Report shows that around 1,300 commuters from Vaudreuil-Soulanges took the Exo train on average on a daily basis this fall. The same period saw more than 1,800 commuters take the train on average from the nine West Island stations. The highest daily ridership by far was at the Vaudreuil station, which saw 778 daily commuters.

Exo expects ridership numbers to increase with the reopening of the Lucien L’Allier station in downtown Montreal later this month, said media relations officer Andréanne Gagnon. Lucien L’Allier has been closed for renovation since April.

The ARTM has denied that it was seriously considering cutting any train services, stating that all avenues for cutting costs being studied were “preliminary.”

Traffic: from bad to worse

However, discussions may be preliminary, but if a significant chunk of West Island commuters opt for the REM over the Exo service, it could mean more serious talks of cost-saving cuts down the road. Any cuts to services of the Vaudreuil-Hudson line would potentially result in hundreds more cars on the bridges between Vaudreuil-Soulanges and the island of Montreal during the daily rush-hour periods.

Those who commute by car from Vaudreuil-Soulanges into Montreal are already well aware of the region’s traffic woes when attempting to cross onto the island. Bridge construction, lane closures and sharing the roads with transport trucks travelling from Ontario to Montreal mean daily congestion and traffic standstills, causing delays for commuters as well as for locals and businesses along the busiest streets around the bridges.

Residents in Vaudreuil-Dorion have been urging the Quebec government to build a high-speed bypass to alleviate some of the traffic along Highway 20’s stretch of Harwood Blvd. for decades. However, a 16,000-signature petition for the construction of such a bypass was dismissed by the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government earlier this fall, meaning that drivers and businesses along Harwood will be dealing with the traffic for the near future.

In an interview with The 1019 Report in November, Vaudreuil-Dorion Mayor Guy Pilon criticized the CAQ government’s management of transportation around Montreal.

“Right now, the CAQ is really, really, really bad on that topic,” Pilon said. “They don’t know where to go.”

Pilon added that the government-funded development of competing public transportation services is something of a boondoggle.

“It’s so hard to understand the final goal of the government,” he said. “Promote (public) transportation? Or cut (public) transportation?”

A mixed solution

Pilon suggested that if cuts need to be made to the Vaudreuil-Hudson line, he would encourage ARTM decision-makers to at least maintain the line between Vaudreuil-Soulanges and Ste. Anne de Bellevue.

“They have to keep the train at least – it’s not a long run – between Vaudreuil and Ste. Anne de Bellevue,” he said.

Once commuters arrive in Ste. Anne, Pilon continued, they would then be able to catch the REM at the Anse à l’Orme station into Montreal. This, he added, would at least save commuters from having to take a car over the bridge and into the city.

He noted that this would be the only solution for commuters from his city who would like to catch the REM into Montreal. The Anse à l’Orme station, Pilon pointed out, is designed with only 200 parking spaces – well below what could accommodate the hundreds of commuters from Vaudreuil-Soulanges looking to drive to the closest REM station.

Questions to ponder

Despite the worrying reports, officials at ARTM and Exo have repeatedly attempted to assuage fears of cuts to train lines.

“The ARTM’s goal is to continue to develop the service throughout the territory, while respecting the limits of available financial resources,” the organization said in a statement earlier this fall. “To do this, several scenarios are being studied (. . .) They are not for decision or implementation, particularly in the case of trains.”

It is clear that Vaudreuil-Soulanges deserves a viable public transit option. The region’s population reached 162,000 in 2021, a 17-per-cent increase in the last decade. More affordable home prices, open space and numerous seasonal family-friendly festivities attract many to the region. And growth is projected to continue, underlining the need for reliable and efficient public transit to and from the region.

However, this also begs numerous questions: To what extent should citizens’ tax dollars go toward a service that relatively few use on a daily basis? Would an increase in Exo’s bus services in the region encourage more commuters to take the train? Would those who already travel by train tolerate possible decreases in the number of train departures? Could Mayor Pilon’s suggestion of a mixed solution be worth a closer look?

As nothing is set in stone, these questions may be pushed to the back burner of public debate for the next while. But should the REM prove to significantly impact Exo’s revenue, Vaudreuil-Soulanges residents may be required to ponder these questions more seriously in the future.