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The existing bridges that cross the Ottawa River to
the west of Montreal Island may be widened along with the main
highways in Montreal that connect to them. Such an exercise would be
an extremely costly over the short-term and would likely attract
more vehicles on to these roads as a result. Montreal's traffic
congestion problems would likely perpetuate or worsen over the long-term
future. People living in the region immediately to the west of
Montreal have the option of traveling on the commuter train that
connects Montreal to Dorion, Vaudreuil, Hudson and Rigaud during
rush hour. This train serves the need of a small percentage of the
commuting public that travels between the outlying suburbs and
places of employment at Dorval and in the downtown area of Montreal.
Building a new bridge across the Ottawa River at West Montreal would
involve considerable expanse and be extremely problematic. One
problem would be the choice of location for such a bridge and also
the roads and highways that would connect to it. Such an exercise
may require considerable expropriation of private property. The
construction of such infrastructure may be a temporary solution that
could encourage more suburban development and more bedroom
communities to appear west of Montreal. More vehicles could
subsequently travel over the new bridge and new roads that connect
on to even more heavily congested roads located elsewhere in
Montreal. Montreal's traffic gridlock may be a long-term problem
without easy solutions.
Chronic daily traffic congestion has the potential to cause
productivity losses in industry and business. It can disrupt crucial
JIT (Just-In-Time) delivery schedules and cost industries lost
production. People who are regularly delayed in traffic and have to
spend more time commuting between home and work could become less
innovative, less creative and less productive in their work. There
are several companies that have begun to recognize this fact and
have begun to allow some of their knowledge workers to work on
assignments from home-offices (telecommuting). Telecommuting may
only be suitable for highly motivated individuals who work in
specific industries and may only be a partial solution to the
problem of lost productivity caused by traffic congestion.
The likelihood of Montreal's traffic gridlock problems being
resolved in the long-term future is remote. That situation would
enhance the business development potential of the Vaudreuil-Soulange
region located to the west of Montreal. Quebec's commercial power
rates are up to 30% lower than those in Ontario where up to 70% of
the power generation capacity may need to be retired (see QL
no 118,
no 141 and
no 154). The high cost of diesel fuel has made the
operation of trucks pulling double full-sized trailers more
attractive to companies that depend on truck transportation. Quebec
allows the operation of such vehicles along designated main highways
including up to the border with Ontario where the operation of such
vehicles is prohibited. That prohibition may have influenced the
choice to build a distribution centre at Les Coteaux over a
community to the west of the Ontario/Quebec border. Future
regulatory negotiations could result in the trans-border operation
of such truck combinations between Quebec and New York State.
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