Noise reduction work to begin: REM night service to be interrupted for six weeks
Posted October 11, 2023 9:23 am.
MONTREAL – Work to reduce the noise impact of the new light-rail system (REM) will force an interruption in night service between the Central Station and Panama station, starting Sunday.
Trains will not run from 10 p.m. Sunday to Thursday for six weeks, said CDPQ Infra, the REM’s prime contractor, in an e-mail to The Canadian Press on Tuesday evening.
The REM usually runs until around 1 a.m. between Central Station station in Montreal and Brossard station on the South Shore.
CDPQ Infra says service will be maintained on Friday and Saturday evenings. In addition, shuttle buses will run between the two stations during the service disruption.
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Trajectoire Québec, an organization that defends public transit users, denounces the service stoppage with only five days’ notice.
“We’ve taken users by surprise with this announcement with only five days’ notice, which isn’t much for those who will have to adjust their trips,” said Sarah V. Doyon, General Manager of Trajectoire Québec, in a press release.
In her opinion, imposing a shuttle-bus connection to the REM between Panama and Brossard stations adds to the inconvenience, whereas the objective of public transit is “to maintain the quality of service so that users can rely on it”.
She points out that CDPQ Infra “should have carried out the work at night, during the network’s maintenance shutdown period, and maintained its commitment to users”.
The REM entered service on July 31 between Montreal and Brossard. The issue of noise from passing trains in certain residential areas has since been raised by several residents.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on October 10, 2023.
