The Groupe Porteur and TramGO team up!

The Groupe Porteur has won the technical and multidisciplinary professional services contract

The Société de transport de l’Outaouais (STO) has announced the awarding of the professional and multidisciplinary professional services contract to the Groupe Porteur, which consists of Systra Canada Inc., Egis Rail S.A. and Services EXP Inc.

Systra, the leader of the Groupe Porteur, is an engineering and consulting firm specializing in rail transportation and mobility established in Quebec for more than 30 years. It is well known for its involvement in tram studies in Quebec and for its engineering role representing CDPQ Infra for the REM de l’Est.

Egis has played a part in developing and operationalizing more than 1,000 km of trams worldwide, and recently acquired Ottawa’s McIntosh Perry, which was involved in more than 1,500 projects in the National Capital Region.

EXP has been established in Gatineau for more than 50 years, where it has carried out more than 3,000 infrastructure, urban development and transportation projects, including the Sentier multifonctionnel des Fées.

The contract, valued at $114 million, will enable the Groupe Porteur to guide the Project Office through the different stages of the Gatineau-Ottawa tram project, including:

• carrying out technical and environmental studies on, among other things:
  • inserting the tram and developing the public spaces;
  • determining the station locations;
  • mobility and traffic;
  • the rolling stock;
  • the environmental impact; and
  • cost updates and work timelines;
• the calls for tenders on construction and rolling stock; and
• the construction work and operationalization.

On June 27, 2024, Canada and Quebec announced a joint investment of $163.5 M for the planning phase of the Quebec portion of the Gatineau-Ottawa tram. On July 13, 2024, the Project Office issued a call for tenders for technical and multidisciplinary professional services. On October 16, 2024, six bids were submitted, an indication of the project’s appeal and the desire of Quebec’s top engineering firms to take part in this dedicated transportation project and to redesign mobility in Gatineau and the national capital area.

Next steps

Because a project of this scope requires that local actors be closely involved in the planning, the next key consultation steps have been identified as follows:

Spring 2025

• Submission by the Groupe Porteur of the work plan setting out the different elements to be carried out and their respective timelines. This preparatory work will provide the foundation for the action plan for the upcoming public consultations on the project.
• Start of the technical and environmental studies along 22 of the 24 km of the circuit located on the Quebec side.

Winter 2026

• Estimated start of the sector-specific public consultations carried out by the Gatineau-Ottawa tram Project Office in cooperation with the Groupe Porteur.

Consult the main stages web page for further details.