Why the AMT can't add trains to its Vaudreuil-Hudson line
Despite urging commuters to change habits and take public transit, AMT hasn't got enough cars
Transports Québec has taken out ads, warning commuters to expect serious traffic congestion on Highway 20 East through the Turcot Interchange starting Sunday — and urging motorists to change their habits and take public transit to avoid the gridlock.
Montreal's public transit agency is doing its part: The STM has added buses that serve Angrignon and Lionel-Groulx stations.
But the Agence métropolitaine de transport (AMT) won't be adding trains to its Vaudreuil-Hudson line.
It just doesn't have enough railcars, said the agency's spokeswoman, Fanie St-Pierre.
The Vaudreuil-Hudson line is the second-busiest route in the AMT's system and the one that serves Montreal's West Island.
St-Pierre said the AMT added 53 cars to its trains on that line just before the start of the school year, as it does every year.
But the agency has a limited number of cars, she said, and they're all in use.
Last December, the AMT launched a call for tenders to build new trains for the Candiac, Vaudreuil–Dorion and Saint-Jérôme commuter lines.
Bombardier was the only applicant, but the AMT rejected Bombardier's proposal because it didn't meet the specifications of the bid. It was hoping to attract new proposals from European railcar makers.
Empty seats
The AMT does monitor ridership and could, if needed, move cars from different lines over to the Vaudreuil-Hudson line. However, St-Pierre said there are plenty of empty seats on that line's trains.
According to figures released earlier this year, there were about 74,000 fewer riders on that line in 2015 compared to 2014.
In partnership with Mobilité Montréal, the committee co-ordinating roadwork in the Montreal area, the AMT gave away free tickets for the train in order to get drivers to give it a try.
That promotion is now over, and St-Pierre doesn't know whether Mobilité Montréal will bring it back.
Costly logistical challenges
Even if they could add more trains, the logistics would cost money. For example, signaling systems would need to be updated to accommodate the extra traffic, St-Pierre explained.
Three train lines – Candiac, Vaudreuil-Hudson and Saint-Jérôme – all use the same stretch of track from Montreal
West to the Lucien-L'Allier station to get downtown, which also complicates scheduling.
St-Pierre says the train has to be seen as just one part of the public transit system, not as an entity unto itself.
"When it comes to public transit, the train is one of the solutions, but there is also the bus. It has to be looked at globally," she said.