Montreal's Trudeau airport to undergo $10B transformation over next decade
CBC
Montreal's Trudeau International Airport and surrounding area is set to undergo a $10-billion transformation over the next decade.
The airport authority for the greater Montreal area, Aéroports de Montréal (ADM), says it has negotiated a $1-billion loan from the Canada Infrastructure Bank to support its plan for the city's main air hub.
ADM says renovations will increase capacity to handle the expected rise in passenger volume to 28 million by 2028 and up to 35 million by 2035. In 2024, passenger volume was a little over 22 million.
"YUL's development plan is extensive, but essential to ensure that our international airport can continue to accommodate growing passenger numbers and meet the expectations and needs of its users," ADM CEO Yves Beauchamp said in a news release.
The authority says the airport's travel volumes have surpassed pre-pandemic levels and described its growth as the highest of any large Canadian airport.
Work includes a complete reconfiguration of the road network leading to the airport to reduce traffic, and the demolition of the multi-level parking garage for a new, larger parking facility.
The airport authority also plans to build a new building that will connect the terminal to the future light-rail station, expected to be operational by 2027.
ADM says other upgrades include more gates and a new satellite air bridge to connect to the terminal.
Beauchamp says the airport is massively scaling up its infrastructure investments to meet anticipated demand.
"About two years ago, we were spending about $230 million per year on infrastructure. This year, we should do $850 million," he said. "And next year, we should reach a billion, our cruising speed for the next years," as they carry out all the projects until 2035.
Macky Tall, the chair of the infrastructure bank's board of directors, said the loan would "create a foundation, a buffer" to allow the airport to move forward with its investments.
He declined to reveal the interest rate of the loan, but said it was "competitive."
Beauchamp said the airport authority is not receiving any subsidies, and will finance the improvements itself through loans and its own revenues, which include airport improvement fees paid by travellers.
The infrastructure bank said in a news release that the investments and added passenger volume will add nearly $3.7 billion in GDP by 2028, and will create thousands of new jobs.
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