Four years of construction in retrospect
Project progress
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On April 12, 2018, we were at the ground-breaking ceremony for the REM. Four years later, the work has progressed enormously, even if there is still a long way to go before commissioning. A retrospective in pictures of four years of construction.
Retrospective video
A look back at the highlights by sector
South Shore and Île-des-Sœurs sector
July 2018: Drilling of the first caissons for the Highway 10 elevated structure.
May 2019: Installation of the first NEBT beams on the South Shore.
July 2019: Installation of the first rails on Highway 10.
February 2020: Installation of the first box girders of the Île-des-Sœurs bridge.
March 2020: Installation of the first catenary poles on the representative segment (segment for testing REM cars and systems).
October 2020: Arrival of the first REM car. © Alstom / C. Fleury.
End of 2020: Start of tests on the representative segment. © Alstom / C. Fleury.
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To come:
- Complete electrification of the branch (South Shore to Central Station) this summer.
- Continued dynamic testing.
- Commissioning this fall.
Downtown sector
Édouard-Montpetit station
October 2018: First blastings.
October 2019: Excavation of station access shaft is completed.
July 2021: End of the construction of the steel structure.
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To come:
- Continuation and completion of formwork and concreting.
- Continuation of construction work on the station entrance.
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McGill Station
December 2018: Relocation and utility protection work on McGill College Avenue completed.
June 2021: Start of the umbrella method, used to demolish the double vault of the future McGill station. By drilling into the tunnel’s existing ceiling, the vault is secured and work on replacing the columns can continue underneath.
March 2022: Construction of the station’s steel structure.
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To come:
- Construction of the steel structure will be completed in the next few weeks.
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Southwest sector
March 2019: Installation of the first beams of the elevated structure over the Lachine Canal.
Late 2019: Archaeological work in the former Irish cemetery in Point St. Charles.
March 2022: Installation of the last rails in the Cross-Country sector.
January 2022: Installation of the last NEBT beams of the South Shore branch. The NEBT concrete beam workshop completed its operations in the last few weeks.
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Deux-Montagnes branch
July 2018: Ground-breaking at Canora and Mont-Royal.
June 2020: Installation of the first steel structure on the Deux-Montagnes branch at the Bois-Franc station.
June 2020: Start of construction of the Rivière-des-Prairies 1 bridge.
January 2021: Mobilization of construction sites between Sunnybrooke and Deux-Montagnes stations.
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To come:
- Continuation of work related to the railway bridges on the Rivière des Mille-Îles.
- Progress on the interior of stations in the Saint-Laurent and Ville-de-Mont-Royal boroughs.
- Work on the structure of stations on the North Shore.
Anse-à-l’Orme branch
Late 2018: First caisson of the elevated structure of the Anse-à-l’Orme branch. In 2019, the pillars of the future elevated structure appeared.
August 2019: Launching gantry crosses Highway 40.
November 2021: End of construction of the West Island elevated structure with the installation of the last segment.
2021: Work on Fairview Pointe-Claire station is advancing!
November 2021 and March 2022: Moving the launching gantries... on the way to the final sprint to the airport and in the Pierrefonds-Roxboro sector.
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To come:
- End of foundation work at Kirkland station.
- Start of construction of the steel structure at Des Sources station, then at Kirkland station.
- Continued construction of the other stations and installation of the rails and systems.
YUL-Aéroport-Montréal-Trudeau branch
Fall 2019: Arrival of the tunnel boring machine in the Technoparc sector, piece by piece.
Early 2020: Assembly of the tunnel boring machine (TBM).
October 2020: Beginning of the TBM’s work. Alice is launched!
April 2022: Arrival below the airport runways.
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To come:
- Assembly of the elevated structure in the Technoparc sector.
- Continuation of TBM operations, which should be completed by fall 2022.