No 3rd link project for Quebec City in a 1st PQ term, leader says

No 3rd link project for Quebec City in a 1st PQ term, leader says

Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime criticizes Paul St-Pierre Plamondon, calling move a 'betrayal'

The Parti Québécois (PQ) says it won’t build a third link between Quebec City and Lévis in its first term, if elected.

During the presentation of his party's priorities for Quebec City and the surrounding region on Friday, leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon indicated that starting construction is unrealistic within the next four years.

"Any other party that tells you they're going to build a tunnel or a link on Île d'Orléans is shamelessly lying to the public," St-Pierre Plamondon said.

In its plan for the region, the PQ wants to instead focus on public transportation by increasing the frequency and number of buses operating in the region to reduce congestion.

PQ leader accuses CAQ of lying to Quebecers about 3rd link

St-Pierre Plamondon criticized Quebec Conservative Leader Éric Duhaime, calling him “an Olympic champion of proposals that have no chance of being realized.”

Duhaime's plan is to build a two-lane bridge to connect Île d'Orléans and Bellechasse, according to Radio-Canada.

At an impromptu news scrum Friday morning, Duhaime had in hand a transcript of the two leaders’ exchange Wednesday evening during the Radio-Canada debate, during which St-Pierre Plamondon said that his "commitment" to the third link "will be kept."

St-Pierre Plamondon "will pay dearly for the betrayal he just committed," said Duhaime. “How can we trust a party leader who abandons his election promises when the campaign isn't even over?"

The third link has been a driving force in the Quebec City region's political scene for years.

There are already two bridges that connect Quebec City and Lévis, but for decades, residents and different groups in the two cities have been asking for a third way to get across the St. Laurence River.

During the 2018 election campaign, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) under François Legault promised it would launch the third link project in its first term.

“There will be no reason to let go of this promise," said Éric Caire, a CAQ MNA in 2018.

However, after several government-commissioned studies on its necessity, the CAQ announced in 2023 it was scrapping a third link for automobiles.

A few months later, following the CAQ's defeat in the byelection in Quebec City's riding of Jean-Talon, Legault promised to consult and listen to citizens on the third link, suggesting that the project could possibly be revived.

In 2025, the CAQ government released $275 million for the project, according to Radio-Canada, saying at the time the third link would consist of a tunnel and a bridge along a central corridor.

The current CAQ Leader Christine Fréchette is still commited to a third link.

"We're going to do it with the private sector to limit the impact on public finances," she said.

Where do the other parties stand?

Québec Solidaire co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal said she would "stop wasting our time with the third link" and would instead finance a second phase of the Quebec City tramway.

The Quebec Liberal Party would continue studies on the third link and would establish predictable, long-term funding for public transit.

With files from Radio-Canada's Philippe L'Heureux and Jonathan Lavoie