All aboard! Montreal’s light-rail train network officially inaugurated – Montreal | Globalnews.ca

Montreal’s electric light-rail train network has been officially inaugurated.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Premier François Legault and Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante were among the dignitaries who attended a ceremony today to launch the first five stations of the 26-station, 67-kilometre electric rail network.

The first segment — a section running from Montreal’s South Shore to downtown’s central station — will open officially for service on Monday.

In the meantime, users will be able to try the system for free over the weekend.

The majority of the rail system, called the Réseau express métropolitain, or REM, will open late next year, with an airport link to come in 2027.

The project’s current cost estimate is $6.9 billion, but Quebec’s public pension fund, which owns and operates the network, hasn’t released an updated price tag.