Bypassing the gridlock of rush hour would be a breeze if you could just ride the waves of the St. Lawrence home to either end of the island of Montreal. No longer just wishful thinking, water-taxis may soon become a thing in Montreal, thanks to an initiative backed by a major Montreal city official.

Chantal Rouleau, mayor of Rivière-des-Prairies-Pointe-aux-Trembles, is the main municipal push behing this project, believing water-taxis would make the lives of commuters much easier, as she told Le Devoir, halving an hour commute into a mere 30 minutes.

In Rouleau's conception, water-taxis would only take people (no vehicles) and would operate 8-10 months out of the year, bringing folks home via the St. Lawrence river. The STM & AMT would need to get involved in planning + coordination, an idea Roleau says they are "open and interested" in pursuing.

A feasibility study will be conducted by Montreal's head transport official in a couple months, which will analyze the cost-effectiveness of water-taxis and which areas would benefit.

If all goes well, water-taxis could be rolling along the river by 2017, in time for Montreal's 375th birthday, as estimated by Rouleau. No hate against water-taxis, especially if they are proven to save people time during their daily commute, but it seriously feels every new city project is getting a 2017 finishing/introduction date. Lets save some stuff for 2018, or hell, bring it on a year earlier.

For more on all things Montreal, follow Michael on Twitter @MDAlimonte

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