Railway Stations in Quebec and Montreal
Gare du Palais, Quebec
In the 19th century, Montreal boomed as an industrial railway hub while Quebec City fell into obscurity. Quebec remained poorly connected by rail to the rest of the continent until the 20th century. A grand chateau-style railway station, called Gare du Palais, was built in 1915 to inaugurate the new railway line crossing the recently-completed Quebec Bridge. A small park with a brutalist fountain by Charles Daudelin was added to the front in 1999, and for some strange reason the contrast works. There’s something grand to this area, leaving you with the misleading impression that Quebec is an important railway hub. But the cavernous emptiness of the halls reveal the truth – only four trains come into the station per day.
Gare du Palais, Quebec
Gare du Palais, Quebec
Viger Square looking unusally pleasant
A similar urban ensemble exists in Montreal: the chateau-style Gare Viger fronted by Viger Square, part of which was also designed by the same Charles Daudelin. But similarities end here. The vibe in this part of Montreal is post-apocalyptic. The station is no longer operational, its interior turned into a series of fluorescent-lit corridors, and its exterior shell marred by air conditioning units and cheap shingling. As for the public squares fronting the station, the concrete monstrosities seem designed by space aliens on crack. I am baffled as to why Daudelin was given other jobs after ruining a whole chunk of Montreal with this park. I had the misfortune of living in front of this park a few years ago. It is populated by Montreal’s surliest homeless people, armed with syringes and guns, and sometimes the guns go off in the middle of the night. Montreal may be Canada’s historic railway hub, but this part of town certainly doesn’t give that impression, nor does the drab-yet-functional Gare Centrale or the deserted Windsor station, for that matter. Quebec ended up with the nice railway station – Montreal ended up with the actual railways.
Daudelin’s sculpture and concrete pillars in Viger Square
Tags: Montreal, Quebec City, Train Stations
david m. says:
yeah, sadly, you nailed it.
March 24th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
Marcelo Benoit says:
At present there are six trains a day. But you must take into account that between 1976 and 1985 this station was closed and trains arrived and ended at two small stations in the middle of nowhere. At least now they arrive at their natural place.
March 29th, 2012 at 12:51 am
Derek Speirs says:
You have photograhed two Quebec City railway stations but have written only about the “Palais” which is used by VISA. The address is 450 de la Gare du Palais. Canadian National plaques are in the lobby. There are two floors but the ceilings are high.
Next door at 330 de la Gare du Palais is now used by Services Canada & is even more impressive. The building is about five floors high & looks like a mini Chateau Frontenac. Was this the building created by Canadian Pacific?
June 19th, 2012 at 4:35 pm
Ilse Leighty says:
The network of railways in Plymouth, Devon, England, was developed by companies affiliated to two competing railways, the Great Western Railway and the London and South Western Railway. At their height two main lines and three branch lines served 28 stations in the Plymouth area, but today just six stations remain in use. The first uses of railway in the area were wooden rails used during the construction of docks facilities. :
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February 24th, 2013 at 4:18 pm