With just 20 days left until Montrealers head to the polls, the two main mayoral hopefuls sat side-by-side and took part in an informal debate Sunday night.
Denis Coderre and Valérie Plante appeared on the popular Radio-Canada television show 'Tout le monde en parle' to talk public transit, cyclist safety and the overall culture of everyone on Montreal's roads as well as this past summer's Formula E electric car race.
The pair were first asked about Plante's plan to add a new Pink metro line to the existing system. Out of the gate, Denis Coderre jumped on the plan by breaking out the calculator. Coderre told host Guy A. Lepage and the rest of the panel on the show that it costs at least $300 million per station, which by his calculations totals $10 billion not the $6 billion projected by Projet Montreal.
While Coderre was mentioning the cost break down, Plante attempted to interject but was blocked by Coderre who said "Valerie, let me talk, it's my turn."
The current mayor added his opponent's timeline for the project to be completed is unrealistic, pointing out the long-awaited Blue Line extension has been in talks for years, with many levels of government and funding involved.
Plante defended her proposal by saying construction would cost less than similar projects — such as the Blue Line or Laval extensions — because the Pink Line would be built using tunnel-boring technology that digs deeper underground, eliminating the need to dig up city streets.
The discussion then turned to cyclist safety, and the recent death of 18-year-old Clément Ouimet, who was killed on Camillien-Houde Way when a vehicle made an illegal U-turn.
Coderre said his team has already started investing money in its Vision Zéro campaign, an internationally-recognized strategy to road safety that includes short-term changes to improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians based on engineering, education and enforcement.
The response prompted another guest, singer and actor Dan Bigras to ask what either candidate would do to get motorists and cyclists to change their attitude and not assume the road belongs to them.
Plante said there needs to be a change in the culture at City Hall, so all accidents are taken into account. She added if she's elected mayor she would create more real bike paths, with dividers and not simply lines painted on a street.
Next up during their 18-minute appearance, questions were raised about the controversial Formula E race from this past summer.
When questioned multiple times about how many tickets were sold and why the full details are still months away, Denis Coderre said it was a great success with 45,000 people in attendance for the first edition of the electric car race, but again refused to give a number on tickets sold versus tickets handed out for free. He added the full details would be released in the coming months, which caused guest Dan Bigras to interrupt him.
Bigras said he cannot understand and finds it impossible that no one has been able to count the number of tickets sold. He told the mayor he doesn't want to know about the overall economic benefits, he just wants a real number of tickets sold. Coderre did not answer.
He repeated the only numbers currently available. He said the race cost taxpayers $24 million spread over six years, with a chunk of the money this year being spent on upgrades to Rene-Levesque Blvd., which he pointed out needed the work anyways.
Valerie Plante said the Formula E event was poorly planned and it could have been held at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve rather than disrupting the busy summer streets of Montreal.
Before ending the night host Guy A. Lepage brought up the idea of Amazon moving a new headquarters to Montreal. Several big cities are vying for the chance to be the online giant's new home, however Amazon is asking for free land, a number of subsidies that would pay employee salaries and a 15-year commitment.
Both Coderre and Plante are in favour of striking a deal with Amazon, with Coderre saying it would be a great boost for the city, while Plante said she would be more cautious with the gifts adding any deal would have to truly benefit Montrealers.
If you missed the unofficial debate, be sure to catch the official debates: first in French on October 19, at the Sheraton Centre, and then in English on October 23, at Concordia University's Oscar Peterson concert hall, presented by CJAD 800, CTV Montreal and the Montreal Gazette.
CJAD 800's Leslie Roberts will moderate the debate with CJAD 800's Aaron Rand and The Gazette journalists Allison Hanes and Linda Gyulai offering both pre- and post-debate analysis. CTV Montreal's Caroline Van Vlaardingen will pose questions submitted by the public for the two candidates.
Before the informal debate, it was a relatively quiet Sunday.
Denis Coderre attended a lunch to honour Holocaust survivors in Montreal held by Federation CJA, and then took part in the annual walk for mental health organized by the Montreal Walks for Mental Health Foundation.
Valérie Plante released a statement, saying Projet Montreal is committed to cleanliness and Montrealers deserve a clean city. She said the cleanliness brigade would be dispatched onto all commercial streets in every borough. As it stands only four boroughs use the cleaning services.
The third mayoral candidate, Coalition Montréal's Jean Fortier, released his own statement Sunday. He pledged to change the way City Hall works, with executive committee members being chosen based on their competence and talent, and not based on which party's banner they wave.