There is no shortage of parking spaces in the Grande Allée area, as the spaces are never all occupied, says the City of Quebec in the debate over building a multi-storey car park on the site of the former Saint-Coeur church. – from Marie.
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“The information we have suggests that parking spaces in this sector are not fully occupied. It is therefore difficult to claim a lack of parking spaces even in the evening,” said the Quebec City communications department.
“Crying Distress”
The promoter of a nine-storey car park project, Groupe Lessard, nevertheless justifies its project with an “emergency call” in the industry.
This is also the opinion of many merchants, who recently expressed their views in a consultation on the withdrawal of “parking” use for the site of the former Saint-Cœur-de-Marie church, which was demolished in 2019.
Retailers believe that there are not enough seats, especially at peak times, and that this hinders customer arrivals and staff hiring.
However, the city of Quebec has a completely different vision. Spokesperson Karine Desbiens clarified that even during major events, when parking demand is higher than normal, “parking spaces are rarely full as festival-goers increasingly park on the outskirts or use public transport to avoid delays at the exit”. .
According to the city, the parking spaces in the Grande Allée commercial area have around 4,600 spaces. Of this number, the Société des parcs auto du Québec (SPAQ), a subsidiary of the Société québécoise des Infrastructures (SQI), confirms that it manages 3,910 on its site. The SPAQ does not disclose the occupancy rate because it “constitutes information of a commercial nature said SQI spokesman Francis Martel.
No loss
The City of Quebec also specifies that, contrary to some claims, the Grande Allée car parks will not be affected by the passage of the tram.
“Since the tram will pass through a tunnel in this sector, it is not planned at this stage of the deliberations to remove the parking spaces in the Grande Allée sector with the installation of the tram,” stressed Ms. Desbiens.
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