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REM will be a huge success which RER will not be because REM will be accessible to all. REM will cost the same amount per km as will the current Metro & buses while RER is horribly expensive which is made even more grotesque by the fact that it doesn even have basic fare integration. RER can run every 2 minutes if it wants to but for a huge swath of the population, it will be nothing more than a luxury liner going by which their taxes paid for yet they cannot use. When it comes to transit people are VERY price sensitive which is something that seems to escape the mandarins at Metrolinx.
 
ssiguy2 said:
REM will be a huge success which RER will not be because REM will be accessible to all. REM will cost the same amount per km as will the current Metro & buses while RER is horribly expensive which is made even more grotesque by the fact that it doesn't even have basic fare integration. RER can run every 2 minutes if it wants to but for a huge swath of the population, it will be nothing more than a luxury liner going by which their taxes paid for yet they cannot use. When it comes to transit people are VERY price sensitive which is something that seems to escape the mandarins at Metrolinx.
Click to expand...
Well, those ''mandarins" at Metrolinx are developing a fare integration plan to combat that problem...

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NoahB said:
None of what you said about the property ownership is suspicious. The CDPQ is using 3 billion of its own money to contract the REM. It is only fair that they expect an ROI. The money they make goes to people's pensions after all.

The minister thing and giving the CDPQ the Mount Royale tunnel for free on the other hand. 😅
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They're already guaranteed an ROI: they get a large subsidy per rider-kilometer, they get government money if they fail to turn a profit, and other guarantees like a non-compete clause.

The fact that the money they make goes to people's pensions is the sketchy part to me - the lines between public and private benefit are heavily blurred. Saying that what's in a company's interest is in the people's interest is how you get the SNC-Lavalin scandal, which failed to gain traction in Quebec because of those same blurred murky lines.
 
SFO-YYZ said:
Perhaps public pension funds like OTPP could create its own infrastructure / Ontario-focused infrastructure subsidiary, like CDQP Infra which is solely dedicated towards sustainable infrastructure investments. Obviously that would mean stepping on Metrolinx jurisdictions, but hey...
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In most respects, Metrolinx’s “Development Oriented Transit” will end up in the same place, perhaps by a different route. Same premise - the cost of building transit is supported by the development it is tied to. And having development around stations becomes a prerequisite to building transit.
As a pensioner, I would not want my future tied to a risky investment, nor one with any agenda beyond ensuring that my pension remains fully funded. So long as this scheme remains low risk, and the development is commercially successful, the Caisse’s stakeholders will be fine.... but I am glad I’m not a Quebec pensioner. It’s a “church and state” kind of thing.

- Paul
 
crs1026 said:
In most respects, Metrolinx’s “Development Oriented Transit” will end up in the same place, perhaps by a different route. Same premise - the cost of building transit is supported by the development it is tied to. And having development around stations becomes a prerequisite to building transit.
As a pensioner, I would not want my future tied to a risky investment, nor one with any agenda beyond ensuring that my pension remains fully funded. So long as this scheme remains low risk, and the development is commercially successful, the Caisse’s stakeholders will be fine.... but I am glad I’m not a Quebec pensioner. It’s a “church and state” kind of thing.

- Paul
Click to expand...

CDPQ is one of the top 10 institutional infrastructure investors in the world, with 20+ years of infrastructure investment and building experience. I would like to think they'd know a thing or two about risk management and infrastructure financing.

But I digress and do apologize. My original post was simply to bring up Montreal's current electrification and catenary installation progress of the REM South Shore branch. Not sure how this discussion became corruption in Quebec...

Below is a high level summary of CDPQ Infra's governance model vs. traditional PPP for those who are interested.

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The only benefit IMO is the trick they pulled: increasing property taxes to pay for a project without the public noticing because the increase is small, and implemented over many decades, and entirely hidden from the public as it increases the tax rate by reducing the tax base available for general government spending slowly overtime as new development happens.
It is brilliant - I’d bet close to 0% of Montreal residents would be able to explain how the project is being paid for.
 
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Darwinkgo said:
The only benefit IMO is the trick they pulled: increasing property taxes to pay for a project without the public noticing because the increase is small, and implemented over many decades, and entirely hidden from the public as it increases the tax rate by reducing the tax base available for general government spending slowly overtime as new development happens.
It is brilliant - I’d bet close to 0% of Montreal residents would be able to explain how the project is being paid for.
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Not exactly a triumph for democracy.
 
canada.constructconnect.com

Industry Perspectives Op-Ed: Time to target shovel-ready projects - constructconnect.com - Daily Commercial News

There’s been a lot of debate recently about the role of infrastructure investment in stimulating the economy. Concerns have been expressed that rushing megaprojects increases the likelihood of building “white elephants.” While this is a valid concern, go
canada.constructconnect.com canada.constructconnect.com

Reference to electrification in this.

Also, electrification funding approved last night in CA.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1323991232574595073
 
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