(Quebec) The federal government says no to a request from municipalities and the CAQ government to bring forward an investment program in public transportation planned for 2026.
Updated yesterday at 5:15 p.m.
Patrice Bergeron
The Canadian Press
Ottawa is already putting money on the table and it is up to the provinces and cities to bring the projects to fruition, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau argued on Wednesday.
Last week, the Minister of Transport, Geneviève Guilbault, deplored the lack of sources of federal funding since the end of an investment program in 2023.
The president of the Union of Municipalities of Quebec, Martin Damphousse, also asked Ottawa to do more.
At a press conference in Quebec, Mr. Trudeau for his part suggested that it is not necessary to bring forward the investment program planned for 2026.
He indicated that an envelope of three billion dollars is already allocated each year to the country for public transport, even before the program called the Permanent Fund for Public Transport, also endowed with 3 billion per year, comes into force in 2026.
“We are (already) making these investments,” he said.
It’s not something that starts in 2026, it’s something that starts being permanent from 2026.
Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada
He gave as an example the federal funding of 1.4 billion already granted to the Quebec tramway project, which came from the already existing envelope of 3 billion per year. The project is, however, on ice while awaiting the proposal that CDPQ-Infra will submit in June.
Mr. Trudeau suggests that provinces and municipalities should first complete the projects before requesting other funds.
“We expect this partnership with the province, with the cities, to be strong to be able to complete major investments for citizens. »
A federal Source close to the matter indicated to The Canadian Press that the current envelope had already made it possible to finance the major projects proposed by the provinces and that we were practically reaching the end of the list of projects, hence the time interval set for 2026 to allocate a permanent envelope of 3 billion per year.
Ottawa wants the provinces to be able to first choose to prioritize projects and also finalize those that should be finalized.
During a UMQ summit on public transportation last Friday, Mr.me Guilbault, for his part, deplored the fact that there is no federal investment program in public transportation between 2023 and 2026.
“That’s why we would like a federal program brought forward, because we have a gap during which we have no federal funding Source,” she declared.
For his part, the president of the UMQ, Mr. Damphousse, had called on Ottawa.
“Honestly, we must not neglect it, the federal government has an important responsibility,” he argued.
“The federal government must play a leading role in the development of public transportation in Quebec. We will question them, be sure of it. »
