Quebec City's public transit agency to launch bus service to Jean Lesage Airport

By next year, travellers arriving atQuebec City'sJean-LesageAirport will be able to step off the tarmac and take a public bus into the city, for the first time.

TheRseaude Transport de laCapitale(RTC) announcedTuesday a new bus, the number 6, will ply aroute from downtownto the airport terminal once every 30 minutes, starting in 2019.

This means the costof travelling between downtown and the airport will dropfrom $34.50 for a taxi rideto $3.50 on an RTC bus.

RTCpresidentRmy Normandsaid there have been repeated demands for a regular bus route over the years, but the transit agency needed time come up with a sustainable plan.

"We didn't want this bus to just become a shuttle to the airport," Normand said.

Normand said the new routewill also be used by regular transit users,since the bus will go by shopping centres and a movie theatreon the DuplessisHighway, which links the airport to the Pierre-Laporte Bridge.

It will then run along LaurierBoulevardin Sainte-Foy, arriving in Old Quebec via Grande-Alle.

'About time'

Quebec City is the only city in Canada with a population of 500,000 with no shuttle bus or public transit to and from the airport.

Right now, the closest RTCbus stop is in L'Ancienne-Lorette, a 20-minute walkfromJean-LesageAirport.

On weekdays, two buses a day run bythe entrance of the airport before 7:30 in the morningand three leavebetween 4:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. They aremostly used by employees. There is no bus service on weekends.

The lack of options for travellerswas brought to public attentionin October2016, when taxi drivers refused to service the airport for 11 hours in a show of protest against theUberride-sharing application.

Organizations that advocate for betterpublic transportation in the city said this will be a game-changer.

"It was about time we offered an efficient, affordable connection from downtown to the airport," saidtienne Grandmont, the general manager of Accs Transports Viables.

quiterre's StevenGuilbeaultalsowelcomed the news.

"We are eliminating another barrier and offering an alternative for citizens and workers who want to lessen their dependence on their car," said Guilbeault.