Another day, another round of delays for commuters trying to get to work by train on Tuesday morning.
“It’s unacceptable if you’re paying that amount of money for a monthly pass like this,” said Rick Swaminathin, who takes the train from Beaconsfield into the city each day.
The trains heading toward Lucien L’Allier left on time, but some did not arrive on time.
A switching problem forced some trains to stop at Vendome, where people had to get off and take the metro the rest of the way.
On Monday, the Réseau du transport métropolitan (RTM) admitted it was having technical problems related to the weather this year.
The RTM sent a message to all clients saying it is doing its best to make things better. A day later, the message hasn’t seemed to calm people down.
READ MORE: Montreal commuters furious as cold weather delays RTM trains
“We’re paying good money and they promote public transportation. This is not the way to make people happy,” Swaminathin said.
Traffic expect Rick Leckner says the recent issues are not surprising.
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“We have a system which is old, which isn’t meant for commuter lines and we’ve been fiddling around with this for millions and millions of dollars trying to find a fix,” Leckner told Global News.
He thinks the fact that the tracks are made for freight trains does not help.
“It’s not meant for commuter trains. That’s to say nothing about the poor schedule people face every day. It’s just a system that people can’t rely on when people are being told to use public transit,” Leckner said.
The new rail system being planned by the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec offers some hope.
“There is some light at the end of the tunnel, as they say. My understanding is the tender process is underway now. They’re supposed to pick the consortium in February. Construction is supposed to begin in the Spring. If they’re on that schedule, the first trains should be running by 2020 or 2021,” he said.
The Caisse tells Global News its new technology will be more resistant to tough weather. Leckner hopes that’s the case.
READ MORE: Group seeking injunction to stop new Montreal electric train
“One would hope that with the $6 billion plus they’ll be spending on this. If we have driver-less cars, I would hope we have switches that can contend with dramatic changes in temperature,” he said.
Until then, people will have to use the current system, and commuters want the RTM to do a better job.
“In future they should be prepared,” Swaminathin said. “This is not a new thing. Snow is not a new thing.”
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