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After being delayed for several years, the city’s transit authority is set to begin the preparatory phase of work to build a new garage for the métro under the Décarie Expressway in the Snowdon sector.
But there are no major works set for the short term. Instead, the Société de transport de Montréal will be demolishing a row of four buildings.
The demolition is for the eventual construction of the northwest attachment centre, which would be located between the Snowdon métro station on the Blue and Orange Lines, and the Villa-Maria station, just farther south.
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On its website, the transit authority explains that the centre would be a sort of garage “where rail vehicles required for nighttime tunnel and track maintenance are parked. It is also used to receive and transport construction materials needed at major station and tunnel refurbishment sites, as well as to remove construction debris from these sites.”
The STM has three such attachment centres already in its network: Viau, Youville and Duvernay. The Viau centre is being expanded to double its capacity, and the STM says that construction of the northwest attachment centre is needed to expand its capacity to maintain trains, which will be particularly helpful when the Blue Line expansion has been completed, with a predicted date of 2031.
In an email, a spokesperson for the STM said that while the project is going ahead, the scope may be changed in the coming months. However, the work requires the construction of an access point, so the STM has purchased four buildings on Décarie Blvd. on the west side, between Snowdon St. and Côte-St-Luc Rd. That demolition will take place sometime this fall. The STM said there will be some lane closures as a result of the work, but the detailed plans and their disruptions to traffic were not divulged.
The STM intends to create a green space in the area where the buildings are now standing. It will have greenhouses that will be used for urban agriculture organizations, a picnic area, benches and a community garden. The STM intends for this green space to remain in place at least temporarily until construction on the attachment centre begins. About 30 trees will be planted on the site, with the intention that those trees may be moved if needed. The STM and the borough of Côte-des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-de-Grâce are building the green area together.
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