Third link: start of work planned for 2028

The Legault government plans to start work on the third link in 2028, in anticipation of an opening around 2034 or 2035.

• Also read: International call: strong interest from firms for the third link between Quebec and Lévis

• Also read: A 3rd link not necessarily to the east with public transport… or not

This is what we can read in a call for tenders for professional services launched on Wednesday. It concerns “the provision of professional support services in engineering and related works for the planning, construction and closing of the new inter-river link project between the Capitale-Nationale and Chaudière-Appalaches regions”.

Timeline

The document contains a “provisional” schedule which is given to interested firms “for information purposes only”. On a few occasions, the client, the Ministry of Transport, mentions the “rigorous schedule” of the project.

According to this schedule, the construction phase, i.e. work on the future link between Quebec and Lévis, will begin in 2028. It will last 48 to 60 months. The end of work phase will follow, lasting 5 months, then the “closing report and transfer of the infrastructure to the Ministry’s operating park”, which is estimated at 6 months. Ultimately, the “end of closure phase” must last another year. Which therefore takes us to 2034 or 2035, since certain activities may overlap.

Bridge or tunnel, undetermined corridor

As mentioned in October, the government is giving firms latitude on the final route, the type of infrastructure and the approaches.

But the mandate specifies that it is “a road link allowing the passage of heavy vehicles for the transport of goods and merchandise” whose first objective is: “Ensuring the economic security of Eastern Quebec through the establishment of a new inter-river link allowing the transport of goods and merchandise within the potential intervention zone.”

The second is: “Ensuring optimal fluidity of road traffic by limiting environmental impact”.

Collective transport “considered”

Concerning collective or active transport, it must be “considered”, the document simply mentions.

The potential intervention zone is delimited between “the east of the Quebec Bridge and the western tip of Île-d’Orléans”.

It is also specified that it is necessary to ensure the maintenance of the waterway and respect for the physical and biological environments. “The construction of the new link must limit its impacts on the water flow regime of the St. Lawrence River and on the habitats and on the species living in the St. Lawrence River, aquatic birds and vegetation.”

Landscape preservation

We must also ensure the “preservation of the riverside landscapes for users and residents” and respect seismic standards.

Remember that the contract signed with the consortium which will be responsible for the construction of the infrastructure will be signed in 2027, after the provincial elections of 2026. Despite everything, the Minister of Transport, Geneviève Guilbault, affirmed that the project would be “irreversible” , which the oppositions in the National Assembly do not buy.

What they said

“The CAQ government persists in improvisation with the third link. After years of vague promises and about-faces, the work is “planned” for 2028, without credible studies to justify this project or established budget. Does anyone really still believe in Minister Guilbault’s project? The citizens of Quebec have the right to obtain clear answers and projects based on evidence, and not opportunistic political announcements. »

—Monsef Derraji, spokesperson for the official opposition on Transport