Ready to take off

While the concept of a rail shuttle serving the Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport was first proposed in the 1970s, it is only now being seriously looked at to ensure the future of Montreal’s airport.

In 2009, the Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (Trudeau Airport) handled some 12.2 million passengers across 40 carriers and 120 destinations. As well as providing 25,000 direct jobs, the airport is also a major economic hub of activity within the region, with  over 300 businesses operating out of the airport generating a further 20,000 indirect jobs.

But getting to and from the airport is no easy ride. Located on Montréal Island about 20 km from downtown, the majority of people travel to and from the airport by car or taxi, clogging up the airport’s roads and surrounding highways. And while an express bus service has recently been introduced, the percentage of Trudeau’s air passengers using public transportation still only hovers around the 3% mark.

When first proposed back in the 1970s, the concept of a rail shuttle serving the airport was passed over in favor of road projects. In 2007, the situation reversed and the City of Montréal gave priority to the Aérotrain project. In fact, a direct rail link serving the airport to the city center has been identified as crucial to ensuring the competitiveness and growth of Trudeau Airport into the future; it has been estimated that such a connection could unlock the benefits of some $1.5 billion CAD (US $1.46 billion) invested in various projects to expand and upgrade airport facilities.

Following a number of studies to confirm the variability and customer expectations for the Aérotrain project, the preferred specification is for a high-frequency, non-stop rail service, direct from airport terminal to the city center.

In Summer 2009, it was decided that the Aérotrain project would most likely adopt an existing rail corridor, one of either the CPR route to Lucien L’Allier AMT station or the Canadian National(CN) route to Central Station. A further study in February 2010 confirmed that Central Station is the preferred downtown location.

By March 30, 2010, the Government of Québec underlined its commitment to the Aérotrain rail shuttle project and in accordance with this, Aéroports de Montréal (or ADM, the not-for-profit corporation responsible for the management, operation and development of Trudeau Airport) is now keen to push forward the Aérotrain project.

As such, ADM has commissioned Steer Davies Gleave to develop investment grade forecasts for both potential alignments. We will be collecting new behavioral data, preparing ridership forecasts, adopting growth projections, and benchmarking other airport rail links. These forecasts will be incorporated into the investment case (financial and cost-benefit analysis) that is concurrently being prepared by ADM.