Transport committee  The agreements were concluded with all provinces in 2018, the 10 provinces and three territories. We all know there have been provincial elections, different things happening, re-profiling, reassessment of priorities, and this had the impact that there's still a lot of money on the table.

Transport committee  Again, I come from a rural community. When I go to urban communities, they talk about mobility. When I go to rural Canada, they talk about connectivity. Probably half of my own riding, just like yours, has no Internet and no cellphone coverage. For me, broadband Internet is the lifeblood of the future.

Transport committee  When we announced the top-up to the gas tax rebate, I was very pleased to meet with small community mayors. This funding, which is direct funding, allows them to really go on with projects that they had in their plan but they could not finance. What I realized is that this is one of the best ways to support municipalities, because this goes to them directly.

Transport committee  Absolutely. It's an important issue. I should mention that the Samuel-De Champlain Bridge is one of the largest infrastructure projects, not only in Quebec and Canada, but also in North America. In the summer, there were up to 1,600 workers on that site. They are truly the heroes of this story.

Transport committee  Madam Chair, I'd like to thank my colleague Mr. Iacono for his question. The Smart Cities Challenge is one of the most interesting projects in my opinion. It really allows us to see that we're using technology and innovation to solve problems we find in various large cities throughout Canada.

Transport committee  I am very pleased to answer the question, Madam Chair. You know, Churence, I also come from rural Canada. My riding is 37,000 square kilometres. You and I share a passion, in terms of making sure our smaller, rural communities will have services. We've done a couple of things.

Transport committee  The Government of Canada and its institutions are examining that question. For our part, we are in solution mode and have been from the beginning. I draw a lot of attention to that project because it's important. I see it as an economic and socioeconomic driver as well as a motor for labour mobility.

Transport committee  As I said, we cannot afford as a country to waste one construction season. I've been talking to unions that are saying they obviously are concerned about making sure their workers will be on site during the coming construction season. You may have seen a bit of frustration on my part.

Transport committee  First, I want to thank my colleague for his question. Since he represents the riding of Trois-Rivières, we share the City of Trois-Rivières and we do many things together. The Canada Infrastructure Bank is another tool in our toolbox. It allows us to think long term and ensure that we can build more infrastructure faster for Canadians.

Transport committee  I wanted to say to my colleague that the high frequency train is an interesting economic development tool. It would provide an infrastructure to the Trois-Rivière region and the heart of Quebec, obviously. I often refer to it as a socioeconomic engine. This also affects labour mobility.

Transport committee  The estimated cost we have at this time from JCCBI, the professionals who are managing the bridge and will be responsible for the deconstruction, is $400 million. You would appreciate today that you don't deconstruct as you used to do in the early days. There are a lot of issues about the environment and about making sure it's safe, because it's over the St.

Transport committee  I'll address the member's question now, but if ever you want to come back to the previous question, I have some numbers for you on the gas tax and other things. Investing in infrastructure is investing in the future of Canadians. As I was saying in my testimony, I am pretty proud to see that we've done a lot.

Transport committee  I have just one page left, if that's okay. I'm almost there, Madam Chair. The Canada Infrastructure Bank will seek to invest $1 billion over the next 10 years and leverage at least $2 billion in additional private sector investments to increase broadband access for Canadians. I would like to thank the members of the committee for the opportunity to update you on the important work we are doing to build modern, resilient and green infrastructure to benefit Canadians throughout the country.

Transport committee  Madam Chair, the doubling of the gas tax is really going to make a difference in communities across Canada, municipalities and first nations. This one-time top-up is to make sure that we don't waste one construction season. I think as a nation we cannot afford to do that, in order to make sure that people will get to work.

Transport committee  Madam Chair, thank you very much for inviting me this morning. If it's okay with you and the members of the committee, I will start with a brief statement, and then, obviously, I'd be delighted to take your questions. Good morning to all of the committee members and thank you for inviting me to speak with you today about infrastructure and our plan for Canada.