Friday, October 31, 2025
The Blue Line Project Office announced the arrival of the tunnel boring machine at the Port of Montreal, marking a key milestone in the project’s progress. Custom-built in Germany for the Montreal metro, this immense drilling machine, with a diameter of 9.7 meters, will be used to excavate and concrete 4.6 kilometers of tunnel to Anjou.
The tunnel boring machine (TBM) will be transported in sections to the construction site of the future Vertières station. This large-scale logistical operation, carried out primarily at night to minimize disruption to traffic, requires special transport due to the oversized dimensions and weight of several components. The TBM’s assembly will take place over several months, with commissioning scheduled for spring 2026.
The Montreal Metro Blue Line Project is No. 10 on ReNew Canada’s 2025 Top100 Projects report.
“For the past year, construction on the Blue Line extension has been progressing according to schedule, and tangible progress is being made. Vertical excavation is now complete at two of the future stations, and work is continuing in parallel at the other sites. At the future Vertières station, horizontal excavation has already begun: our teams have started digging a section of the tunnel heading east to accommodate the tunnel boring machine. Excavation in the west direction, towards the Saint-Michel station, is also underway,” said Maha Clour, Head of the Blue Line Project Office.
Transportation of a tunnel boring machine component weighing 86 tons to the future Vertières station. (STM)
The Blue Line Project is a key project for the development of Montreal’s East End. Extending over a distance of 6 km, this line will add five metro stations east of Saint-Michel station, reaching the borough of Anjou. This project is being carried out in collaboration with five responsible organizations: the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, the Metropolitan Regional Transportation Authority, the City of Montreal, the Quebec Infrastructure Corporation, and the Montreal Transit Corporation.
Featured image: The Blue Line Project Office was visited by Jonatan Julien, Minister of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, Chantal Rouleau, Minister responsible for Social Solidarity and Community Action and Minister responsible for the Metropolis and the Montréal region, and Karine Boivin Roy, Member of the National Assembly for Anjou-Louis-Riel, to discuss the progress of the work. (Louis-Étienne Doré)
