Major work | Towards “difficult” days at Montreal-Trudeau airport

The increase in the number of travelers continues at Trudeau airport, which welcomed more than 22 million passengers last year, a summit. If this increase will stabilize in 2025, the coming months may be “difficult”, admits management, which will launch major work to improve the fluidity of travel.

Posted at 2:01 p.m.

“Important work will be launched on our road network. […] Inevitably, there will be times when access will be more difficult and parking will be insufficient. It will not always be easy to come to Yul, we are aware of it, ”said the CEO of Montreal Airports on Thursday, Yves Beauchamp.

He presented the annual report of his organization, at the large library, before dozens of citizens and representatives of civil society having moved for the occasion.

In the spring of 2024, ADM had presented a 4 billion plan to solve the serious accessibility problems. The whole thing provides for the addition of parking lots, new boarding doors and above all a capacity of the tripled landingll, from 6 to 18 lanes. The end of the work is scheduled for 2028.

Already, one of the access roads to the P4 parking lot will be closed this summer. Then, in October, “we are going to make sure that the parking lot will no longer be accessible, and there it will begin to be more restrictive,” said Mr. Beauchamp.

“The work is major and the investments too, but they correspond to a need. Piece per piece, we build the airport that Montreal needs. […] The transition to the new Yul will be demanding, “he added, evoking a” critical moment “.

In the immediate future, the mitigation measures in place last summer will remain in place, that is, the two Express landingllits at the P4 and the P10, but above all, free parking for 40 minutes, which is already in place since 1^is May.

Traffic jam … and noise

All this occurs while Trudeau Airport welcomed some 22.4 million passengers in 2024, a record which represents an increase of 5.8 % compared to 2023. Two years ago, the leap was even more marked, 32 % compared to 2022.

For 2025, however, stabilization of the situation is expected: barely 400,000 additional passengers are expected, for a total of 22.8 million.

“Even if inflation has dropped, the pressure remains strong on households,” said Beauchamp. The tariff war also generates, he says, a drop in flights to the United States. However, this is compensated by the increase in domestic and international flights.

However, which says increases of travelers, says increase in the number of flights, to the chagrin of certain citizens, who had moved by dozen Thursday to denounce that the level of noise pollution reaches heights. The number of complaints linked to air movements has also increased by 35 % compared to 2023.

A hurry, Mr. Beauchamp replied that Adm “made progress” in the matter. His group last year submitted a request to Transport Canada to end flights between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. in the morning. If it goes forward, it would mark a first North American first, restricting up to 8000 movements at night.

“What is it based on, between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m.?” It’s just five hours of sleep. There are so many studies that show the harmful impacts of lack of sleep and that, they don’t care, “said the co-coordinator of the Mother’s organization at the front, Nathalie Hensley, in a press scrum.

The organization also denounces that the growth of the airport will destroy dozens of acres of natural environments. “Flight growth, we did not choose it,” persisted M^me Hensley, by calling on the population to travel less to reverse the trend.

R For income … and Rem

In 2024, ADM generated $ 917 million in income, up 8.2 %. Investments, especially linked to the EMP station expected by the end of 2027 and the work in progress, reached 362 million, against 240 million in 2023. This year, the pace of these investments will accelerate even more.

“In 2024, a satisfactory financial situation was found in 2024. Gradually we continue to turn the page on the pandemic. […] We are now investing in the future, ”noted the chief financial officer, Aymeric Dussart.

Regarding the REM, moreover, work in the trench is now 75 % supplemented and those in the northern tunnel, 90 %. The elevator cages are also practically completed. Once the light train has been connected to the airport, the latter expects 25 % of travelers to happen by public transport.

As of this fall, a direct link will however be created between the airport and the REM station of the sources, which must be delivered in October 2025. Bigs will go to 15 minutes.