{"id":160014,"date":"2026-08-07T21:49:21","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:49:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/160014\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T21:49:21","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T21:49:21","slug":"green-line-service-to-suffer-when-blue-line-extension-is-completed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/canada\/160014\/","title":{"rendered":"Green Line service to suffer when Blue Line extension is completed"},"content":{"rendered":"

It will be at least a decade and a half before the m\u00e9tro\u2019s oldest train cars can be replaced, the Soci\u00e9t\u00e9 de transport de Montr\u00e9al confirmed to The Gazette on Thursday.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, all the oldest trains will be transferred over to the m\u00e9tro\u2019s Green Line \u2014 the second busiest line on the network, as those trains will not be compatible with the control software on the Blue Line when the extension is put into service, slated for 2031.<\/p>\n

The model MR-73 trains, which were built in the 1970s, are at the end of their useful lives, and are currently among the oldest subway trains in the world. They break down 11 times more often than the Azur trains, which were put into service last decade.<\/p>\n

The situation highlights the urgency to replace the aging trains, the STM said.<\/p>\n

STM chairperson Aref Salem said recently that the transit authority has two pressing priorities: investing massive amounts to catch up on delayed maintenance projects in the m\u00e9tro, and to replace the MR-73 cars.<\/p>\n

In an emailed statement sent to The Gazette Thursday, STM spokesperson Renaud Martel-Th\u00e9or\u00eat said the project to replace the MR-73 trains entered the study phase in May when the agency\u2019s board of directors put aside $11 million to begin studies. He added that in addition to replacing the old m\u00e9tros, the STM has to replace the train control system and renovate the Beaugrand and Angrignon garages.<\/p>\n

A PowerPoint presentation<\/a> given to the city\u2019s executive committee in February 2025 estimated the cost of the project at between $8 billion and $10 billion. Just the study phase of the project is expected to cost $46 million. By comparison, it cost $2.4 billion to replace the MR-63 trains with the Azur-model trains<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\t\tEditor\u2019s Picks\t<\/p>\n

Martel-Th\u00e9or\u00eat said a pre-project study will be tabled by 2028 and after that time, the province must give permission to the STM to put together a business case that would allow the province to officially greenlight the project.<\/p>\n

Martel-Th\u00e9or\u00eat said such projects typically take 15 years to complete, so time is of the essence. It took 12 years for the first Azur trains to arrive after their first studies were launched.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is an urgency to act for several reasons: the MR-73 cars will be 60 years old in 2036 and will have exceeded their useful life by 20 years at that point; the Azur train fleet will have to be transferred to the Blue Line when the extension project is completed and that will concentrate all the MR-73 trains, which are less reliable, on the Green Line,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n

Public transit lobby group Trajectoire Qu\u00e9bec believes replacing the old m\u00e9tro cars should be the province\u2019s top public transit priority.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt doesn\u2019t make sense that we haven\u2019t advanced at all on this project,\u201d group spokesperson Brian Nash<\/a> said in a phone interview. <\/p>\n

Nash urged the province to urgently earmark the funds to replace the old trains. A recent announcement of $6 billion in federal funds dedicated for public transit is likely to be spent on tramway projects in Quebec City and Gatineau. Most of the money coming to Montreal will be spent on maintenance of the aging m\u00e9tro network.<\/p>\n

He said it was \u201cscandalous\u201d that the province has been dragging its feet on this file. The city\u2019s main opposition party, Projet Montr\u00e9al, is hoping to get the public to pressure the province to act. Last week, the party launched a petition<\/a> to speed up the project and begin replacing the trains by 2036.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Profile<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\tYou’ll often see Jason Magder donning a hard hat and fluorescent vest at a local construction site. As The Gazette’s transportation reporter for more than a decade, he has seen the new Champlain Bridge built, the old one demolished and followed the ups and downs of the city’s transit system. He has been covering news in Montreal for 25 years.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\tjmagder@postmedia.com
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