The West Island got its first look at a proposed electric train line that will link the area to the airport, South Shore, Deux-Montagnes and the downtown core on Thursday night.
The system, which won’t be running until 2020 at the earliest, was revealed at an open house in Pointe-Claire held by the Caisse de Depot.
“It’ll be like a metro station, so people will wait inside, there’s going to be a wifi connection,” said Caisse spokesperson Jean-Vincent Lacrois. “It’s going to be a brand new service.”
The Caisse de Depot revealed details of the system in April. It will stretch for 67 kilometers and promises to bring commuters from downtown to Trudeau Airport in 20 minutes and from Ste-Anne-De-Bellevue to downtown in 40 minutes.
“We’ve been fighting for rail service in the West Island for many years and this is the fruit of all the work we’ve done over the years,” said Pointe-Claire Mayor Morris Trudeau.
Residents at the information session were impressed by the ambitious project.
“This would allow me the freedom to go downtown without worry about parking, without worry about traffic,” said resident Tim Fain.
Not everyone was excited. Ross Stiss, a spokesperson for environmental group Sauvons L’Anse-A-L’Orme, said he is concerned about the impact the light-rail system could have on green spaces.
“We’re very concerned that these train stops will try to push more development, especially with the Ste-Anne-De-Bellevue stop,” he said.
The open house was the fourth public consultation on the project thus far. Another two are scheduled for next week, with one being held in Deux-Montagnes and another in downtown Montreal.
