Prospect of 550 trains a day worries Town of Mount Royal residents

The mayor of the Town of Mount Royal says the plan to send light rail trains through hismunicipality does not have the support of citizens and that the group overseeing the project should make more of aneffort to understand the needs of residents.

On Monday night,TMR'stown council announced it will form a committee ofcitizens and town officialsto address the problem, and they say they want REM officials at the table.

"People are angry, people are afraid," said Mayor Philippe Roy.

Residents have expressed concernabout the noise the trains will make when they start rolling.

An estimated 550trains will pass through TMR every weekday, and hundreds still on weekends, according to the current plans by CDPQ Infra.

Expected to be completed in 2024, the $6.3-billion Rseau express mtropolitain (REM) will connect downtown Montreal, the South Shore, Trudeau airport, the West Island and the North Shore.

The REM's layout sends trains from Deux-Montagnes, Mascouche, Trudeau airport and the West Island all through TMR.

Earlier this month, TMR held a public consultation attended by more than 300 people.

The mayor says he's never seen such a strong public response, but REM organizers aren't taking their concerns seriously enough.

Roy sent a letter to officials on Sept. 9, he noted, but received no response.

'Why don't they listen to us?'

"At the end of the day, the Caisse de Depot is owned by all Quebec taxpayers. So why don't they listen to us?" said TMR resident Georges Sayyegh.

He said he'd like to be part of the committee, and hopes it starts a dialogue between the municipality and CDPQ Infra.

Resident Joan Fraser is encouraged by town council's reaction, but she believes the time has come for legal action, such as an injunction.

"Another committee will not, in my view, be enough to make them budge," she said.

TMR plans to assemblethe light-rail committee in the near future.

A spokesman for CDPQ Infra did not respond to a request for comment on Monday.