REM's Anse-à-l'Orme branch delayed until spring 2026, Deux-Montagnes line to

The opening of the branch of the REM connecting the West Island city of Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue to downtown Montreal is being delayed until spring 2026.

But the Deux-Montagnes branch, which will start in Deux-Montagnes, cross Laval and the West Island before running through the Mount Royal tunnel into downtown, is slated to open in November. 

CDPQ Infra, the organization charged with building and operating the new light-rail network, had earlier said both lines would be completed by the fall of 2025. 

The staggered opening of the two lines means that the whole network, minus a planned eventual connection to the airport, is set to be up and running eight years after construction began in April 2018.

“The Deux-Montagnes branch line has been long awaited,” said Jean-Marc Arbaud, the president and CEO of CDPQ Infra, in a statement. “We are working tirelessly with our partners to offer users a means of transportation that will be efficient for decades to come.”

CDPQ Infra said in a media release that the delay on the Anse-à-l’Orme branch — which ends in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue — is to allow the operator to gradually manage the addition of branches and cars to its network, which will grow from 17 kilometres to 67 kilometres once the lines are operational.

The South Shore branch of the REM began operating in July 2023. It has had its own challenges, notably breaking down several times in the winter, leading to long lines for shuttle buses at its stations. 

CDPQ Infra says it has improved the REM’s ability to work in the winter. The trains’ winter braking systems have been improved, as have the heating of the rail switches. The organization also says it has improved snow removal.