Ending the Metro at 11 p.m.? Montreal considering transit reductions amid funding spat with Quebec
CTV
Significant cutbacks are being considered in Montreal, including a stoppage of Metro service at 11 p.m., to cope with a potential reduction of public transit funding from the province.
Significant cutbacks are being considered in Montreal, including ending Metro service at 11 p.m., to cope with a potential reduction of public transit funding from the province.
Amid ongoing negotiations with public transit companies, Quebec's transport minister, Genviève Guilbault, warned earlier this week that the province cannot absorb their massive deficits. Calculations show a cumulative shortfall of $2.5 billion in five years if nothing changes between now and then.
The service reductions in Montreal, first reported by Radio-Canada, include ending evening Metro service at 11 p.m., stopping intercity bus routes after 9 p.m., and closing some routes.
"It's not something we want to do and I think that's our message here today," said Laval Mayor Stéphane Boyer, whose residents also rely on the Metro system.
Boyer joined the mayors of the Greater Montreal Area, including Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante, at a press conference Thursday to voice their concerns about the future of public transit funding.
The vast majority of the deficit comes from Montreal where 90 per cent of the shortfall stems from the city's public transit companies.
Guilbault initially made an offer of absorbing 20 per cent of deficits, which was swiftly rejected by transit companies and Montreal-area mayors.
