Transport Committee on Feb. 28th, 2019

[Jacques Fauteux]

Thank you for the question. In this case, we held a competition, which is subject to international trade laws, as you know. In terms of the $900 million or so announced at the end of last December, the President of Siemens made a commitment to invest money in Canadian content or to find 20% Canadian content. Under the circumstances, Siemens has created a website through which it invited Canadian suppliers to express their interest in participating in what the company calls a supply day. The purpose was to allow suppliers in Quebec and Ontario to interact with the company. The movement has already started. We are of course letting the folks from Siemens do that work, but we have already started to move forward with them on implementing the initiative.

In addition, I would like to add that VIA Rail is renewing its fleet quite extensively, apart from what Siemens is doing. We have invested more than $154 million in modernizing our Heritage fleet and making it more accessible. The four suppliers who were selected and received the funding come from Quebec.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

I have to interrupt.

Thank you very much.

We're moving to Mr. Iacono.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

My thanks to the witnesses for being here this morning.

Mr. Keenan, in your opening remarks, you mentioned the amount requested by VIA Rail in the supplementary estimates (B). Can you give us some more details about the specific features of the new trains? How do they differ from those of the current fleet?

[Michael Keenan]

I'm sorry, but I didn't hear your question properly. Is it about the fleet renewal or the high frequency rail proposal?

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

I'm talking about the fleet renewal.

How does the renewed fleet compare to the current one?

[Michael Keenan]

In our view, the fleet renewal procurement is progressing very well.

The project has come in and is ahead of schedule. That's exactly why the amount is there. We're pulling it ahead because VIA is ready to begin the payment schedule earlier than anticipated. That positions VIA Rail, in our view, very well on two fronts. First, it gets the new fleet in place slightly ahead of schedule. Second, when the government completes the due diligence to make a decision with respect to an investment in high-frequency rail in the Quebec City-to-Toronto corridor, there is a new fleet that is ready to be a backbone of that should the government decide to proceed with that project.

Madam Chair, if you'll permit me, I made a small error in answering the previous questions about the $760,000. It is included in the existing funds, but it's not included in the $8 million that was provided for in budget 2018. I made a mistake. It's part of the $3.3 million that was provided in budget 2016 to support the due diligence on the high-frequency rail project proposal of VIA Rail.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Thank you.

Ms. Gillis, I represent the riding of Alfred-Pellan in Laval, in the greater Montreal area, and the Champlain Bridge is a project that is close to our hearts.

Can you give us an update on the progress of the work and the expected opening date?

[Kelly Gillis]

To date, our partner, the Signature on the Saint Lawrence (SSL) group has not changed the deadline for opening the bridge. It is still planned for the end of June 2019. The bridge is now finished—I could walk from one end to the other—but it is not open yet. That being said, most of the major work has been completed.

During the winter, we cannot work on some features of the bridge. You need good weather conditions for some of the work, such as the

weatherproofing and putting the final asphalt on. That will be done in the spring.

At this point in time, SSL continues to confirm to us that the opening of the bridge will not be later than the end of June 2019. We do have an independent engineer who looks at the schedules who has also confirmed to us that we are on track. There is nothing to make us believe that that wouldn't be the case.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Thank you.

Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated is requesting additional funding of nearly $15 million for deconstructing the Champlain Bridge. As I understand it, the Champlain Bridge will not be demolished.

Could you give us more information about the deconstruction process? What are the reasons for deconstruction rather than demolition?

[Sandra Martel, Interim Chief Executive Officer, The Jacques-Cartier and Champlain Bridges Inc.]

The Champlain Bridge must be deconstructed mainly because 80% of its load is the bridge itself. We know that, over time, the bridge will deteriorate. That is why it has been reinforced to accommodate traffic, but it continues to deteriorate. The reinforcement measures taken were temporary. This reinforcement work therefore has a limited lifespan.

In addition, shortly after the new bridge is commissioned, parts of the existing bridge will have to be demolished because the two bridges are very close at their ends. Demolition work will therefore have to be done to complete the new bridge.

Everything involved in maintaining the structure over the long term would cost at least $4 to $7 million per year, even if the bridge were unused. So an investment would still need to be made. If a beam were to fail, for example, if only because of its own weight, action would need to be taken.

That is why we made the decision to deconstruct the bridge.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

What is the total projected cost of the deconstruction?

[Sandra Martel]

For the whole project, including the bridge deconstruction, engineering services, lawyers and so forth, we have a budget of about $400 million.

[Angelo Iacono, Liberal, Alfred-Pellan, QC]

Do you have a completion date?

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Thank you very much, Mr. Iacono.

We're moving to Mr. Sikand.

[Gagan Sikand, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Mr. Keenan, you mentioned the $1.95 million to remediate federal sites.

Just to preface my question, I represent Mississauga—Streetsville and before I was elected, a railcar hopped off the rails. I don't like to say it's minor, but relative to some of the devastating crashes we've seen, it is fairly minor. What qualifies as a contaminated site?

[Michael Keenan]

Madam Chair, that's a great question.

A contaminated site in the Transport Canada portfolio would be lands owned within the Transport Canada portfolio and have a contamination from historic activity. Often airports have PFAS, that foam that was used in firefighting drills, and often petroleum products.

In the case where a railcar goes off and there's a rail accident and spillage of a product, it would be the responsibility of the rail carrier and the shipper to clean up and remediate the site.

[Gagan Sikand, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

What are the concerns to public health in these contaminated sites?

[Michael Keenan]

The concerns vary by the contamination.

PFAS, the firefighting foam that was historically used in airports, as an example, is used in drills. It was not known at the time, but it contains compounds toxic to humans. It gets in the groundwater. We're working on remediation plans at several airports with respect to that.

[Gagan Sikand, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

Okay.

Ms. Gillis, you answered my colleague's question with regard to investing. Could you speak to how detrimental it is if Doug Ford's government, or any provincial government, doesn't come to the table?

[Kelly Gillis]

The investing in Canada plan overall in investing in infrastructure is the key enabler. When we're looking at the plan itself, it has, as some people are well aware, four main streams: public transit, green, cultural and recreational, and rural and north. In each of those areas it provides opportunities for infrastructure across the country. Each province and territory is looking at their own priorities and intake process. They are a key partner with us because the provinces and territories sign the agreement and provide the projects to us. That is overall how the process works.

[Gagan Sikand, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

Thank you.

Ms. Gillis, in October 2018, Infrastructure Canada decided they were going to modify terms and conditions to help with the timeliness of disbursements. Could you speak a little to that or perhaps what else you would consider modifying?

[Kelly Gillis]

Certainly.

When we're looking historically at our infrastructure investments in our legacy programs, the reimbursement processes with provinces and territories is based on when municipalities determine when to bill provinces; provinces determine when to bill us, more or less an invoice-by-invoice process. We have been working to have a more robust process, more predictability in understanding when bills are going to come, linked to the economic activity that's happening across the country.

We have a number of examples of projects that are complete or nearly complete without bills coming to be reimbursed. Last fall we had a federal-provincial-territorial meeting and discussed this overall. It's an issue for the provinces as well as for the municipalities. Everybody wants timely cash flow.

[Gagan Sikand, Liberal, Mississauga—Streetsville, ON]

That's great. Sorry to cut you off.

Before I pass over my time, I do want to thank everybody for being here. I know the good work you do transcends politics.

[The Chair, Liberal, Judy Sgro]

Mr. Rogers.

[Churence Rogers, Bonavista—Burin—Trinity, Lib.]

Mr. Keenan, I'm happy to see that our government's investing in rural and remote airports across the country, and particularly, of course, in Wabush, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Marine Atlantic provides critical service to the people of Newfoundland and Labrador. They're requesting around $38 million in these interim estimates, and we know that one of the areas of focus for Marine Atlantic is fleet renewal. Does Marine Atlantic have a fleet renewal program, and if so, what is the schedule for that renewal program?