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The Rapibus is a bus rapid transit system for the Société de Transport de l'Outaouais (STO) in the city of Gatineau, Quebec. Construction is slated to be completed in the summer of 2013 with service to begin in the fall.〔(Le Reseau Rapibus )〕 The Rapibus aims to speed up the service for commuters in growing sub-divisions in the northern and eastern areas of the city by alleviating the congestion on key arteries currently served by bus-designated lanes. A direct link to Ottawa is not included in the current Rapibus plan due to the uncertainty of the future of Ottawa's rapid transit network following the cancellation of a planned light rail line.〔(STO - Rapibus )〕〔(Gatineau's Rapibus to go ahead, but not to Ottawa )〕 ==Development process== In the 1990s, the STO and the Communauté Urbaine de l'Outaouais had initiated plans to improve public transit in the Outaouais urban community as traffic problems were growing in several areas particularly in the eastern end of the city in the Quebec Autoroute 50 corridor as well as other bridges spanning the Gatineau and Ottawa Rivers. At that time, the CUO privileged existent railway corridors including the Canadian Pacific line in Hull and Gatineau for a future rapid transit corridor which would by-pass some the most congested areas of the city. Plans were also made for improved inter-provincial crossing to Ottawa. Before newer studies were made, several new bus lanes were added on Boulevards Gréber, Fournier, Maisonneuve and Alexandre-Taché as well as the Portage Bridge in order to speed up the service in the late 1990s and 2000s. Environmental assessments began in the 2000s but government funding was not immediately available by both the federal and provincial levels. It was in 2005 that the project started to evolve faster as Marc Bureau, defeated Yves Ducharme for mayor of Gatineau in the municipal elections. During his campaign, Bureau listed the Rapibus system as one of his top priorities. A few months after his election win, talks between the City of Gatineau and the Quebec government in order to strike a deal for the amount of funding for the project. Some members of the Gatineau City Council, Mayor Bureau, STO administration staff and Cabinet Ministers of the Quebec provincial government including formers Finance Minister Michel Audet and Transport Minister Michel Després along with Treasury Board President Monique Jérôme-Forget met in Quebec City on December 6, 2006, to discuss about the deal and how much each level will spend. Following the meeting, Bureau indicated some optimism about a future deal that would guarantee a $150 million funding by the government. However, the Minister responsible for the Outaouais region Benoît Pelletier told reporters in February 2007 that it would be difficult to realized the project in a short period and no funding was announced in the 2007 Quebec budget on February 20, 2007, prior to the provincial elections. Quebec Premier Jean Charest later promised during the electoral campaign that the project will be completed for 2010 while pledging $75 million for the project. While awaiting government funding, the STO led by president and Gatineau councillor Louise Poirier launched in late-February 2007 a radio and television campaign promotion about the project to help attract more support from the local residents.〔(STO - Rapibus - Capsules vidéo informatives )〕 After the provincial elections, the Charest government tabled a second budget which included significant funding for the project which passed the National Assembly on June 1, 2007. An official announcement was made on October 26, 2007 during a press conference with Poirier, Pelletier, new Quebec Transport Minister Julie Boulet and federal Transport minister and former STO president Lawrence Cannon. The Quebec government would invest $146 million while the city of Gatineau will fund the remainder of the costs ($49 million), while there are no direct federal government funding for the project.〔(Charles Thériault : Le Rapibus est dans la poche | Le Droit | Cyberpresse )〕 The initial proposed date for the inauguration of the Rapibus system was slated for 2007, however it was later pushed back for 2010 because of various issues that slowed down the process. Multiple environmental assessments were made, as portions of the route will pass through greenspace areas such as Lake Leamy park near the Casino and also near Lake Beauchamp Park in the east end of the city. Construction was set to start in late 2008 or early 2009 with the completion expected by the fall of 2010, however it was delayed by a year. Construction of the Rapibus began in late 2009, with completion set for 2013. Groundbreaking on the project occurred on November 30, 2009 at the site of the future Montcalm Station. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Rapibus」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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