Caisse proposes 3rd Quebec-Levis link for public transit

Quebec's proposed tunnel between Quebec City and Levis (photo: Quebec government)

The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) is proposing a third Quebec City-Lévis link in the form of a tunnel under the Saint Lawrence River reserved exclusively for a tramway line.

Quebec's pension fund manager released a 140-page report on Wednesday, picking up a proposal by Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault, who last spring abandoned the idea of a third road link in favour of a project for public transport only.

After losing the Jean-Talon byelection to the Parti Québécois (PQ) last fall, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government asked the CDPQ to look into ways to improve transit in Quebec City.

The Plan CITÉ proposed on Wednesday by the CDPQ is a "global and structured vision for improving mobility throughout the Quebec City metropolitan community, from 2025 to 2035 and beyond," the report reads.

It totals 95 km of new corridors dedicated to public transit and does not recommend a Quebec City-Lévis highway link.

"Ultimately, it proposes two new tramway lines linking Quebec City and its central sectors from east to west and north," it noted."These tramway branches will total 28 km of track and include some 40 universally accessible stations open 20 hours a day with high service frequencies."

-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on June 12, 2024.