Ian Edwards is President of Infrastructure for SNC-Lavalin. This speech was given at the Board of Trade of Metropolitain Montreal on May 6, 2016.

1. SNC-Lavalin: Building what
matters
Ian L. Edwards’ speech*
Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
May 6, 2016
*Check Against Delivery

2. SNC-Lavalin Ian L. Edwards’ speech – Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal
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Hello, Bonjour,
Thank you to the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal for the
opportunity to speak in this Strategic Transportation Forum today.
I am Ian Edwards, the President of Infrastructure for SNC-Lavalin and I’m
relatively new to Canada and Montreal but not new to the transport sector
having spent my whole career in the development and construction of
infrastructure across the globe.
I moved to Montreal approximately one and a half years ago to join SNC-
Lavalin after spending almost 20 years in developing infrastructure in the
Asia pacific region. This was across a range of countries such as Hong
Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Indonesia, Philippines and Australia, to
name a few.
Prior to this, I was based in the UK primarily working in London developing
transport links to the redevelopment of the old London docklands. The
global nature of my past has helped me develop a valuable context on what
I think leads to the successful development of infrastructure projects.
I’m actually very excited to be in North America, especially Canada
because of the strong commitment by government to invest in infrastructure
so I see an interesting period for our industry ahead.

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It was also pleasing to see the recent announcement by the Caisse de
depot regarding the commitment to build the LRT in Montreal.
What I want to talk about today is how urban transit systems can enhance
and support the future growth of our cities and economies and also how
SNC-Lavalin will support this growth both in the global infrastructure
context but especially here in Canada.
* * * *
Global context
If we first consider the global context for infrastructure especially transport.
In the developing world, we see populations moving to urban cities as the
economies become wealthier. This urbanization creates the need for more
transit as modern cities are generally based around a dense living concept.
In the developed world transport infrastructure has become old and in need
of replacement. In addition, alternate methods of transport to the car are
desperately needed to complement an efficient transport solution again in
urban areas.
I also believe that in the developed world we will also see a significant
technology disruption to car ownership over the next decade. With the
introduction of various transport alternatives and the decreasing desire of

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the younger generations to own cars together with the availability of
efficient mass transit systems we will see significant change.
You will find some very interesting research on this by a number of people.
As an aside the current world demand for infrastructure globally is 4 Trillion
dollars and supply is 3 Trillion dollars giving an annual deficit of one trillion
year on year. So the world is desperately in need of additional transport
infrastructure.
* * * *
Benefits
It’s very clear that improved transportation brings economic benefit in a
number of ways. Urban transit systems play a key role in creating this
benefit. The direct benefit is the immediate economic and employment
opportunities from the design and construction of the infrastructure followed
by the long term employment created to operate and maintain the railway.
Perhaps less tangible is the benefit of efficient movement of people and the
creation of commercial, retail and residential hubs located at stations along
transit systems.

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There are also social benefits where leisure, restaurant and retail hubs are
created at street level along a transit system. Traffic congestion, pollution
and parking issues are all improved leading to a better quality of life.
* * * *
Global examples
Globally different governments have adopted different models to create
effective transit links in their cities.
In Hong Kong, many of the mass transit rail system has been funded on a
property model where government and developers have worked together to
create commercial/retail and residential hubs along the alignment of the
new railways. This has been a success story both financially and socially.
In Singapore, a more social approach has been taken where government
has made a commitment to ensure 90% of the population are within 10
minutes’ walk of a transit station.
In London over the last two decades the goal has been to refurbish a
decaying transport system and to improve east west connectivity to
increase the efficiency of the whole system to address the needs of a
modern city.
* * * *

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Canada
In Canada, we have our own success story with significant investment
being made in urban light rail transit systems in all major cities.
Between 2002 and 2010 the federal capital investment was over $10B
which created over 140,000 jobs and is reported to have generated $21B In
total economic output according to Canadian Urban Transit Association.
As SNC-Lavalin, we are proud to have played a major role in the
development, design, construction and operation of 6 out of the last 9
transit systems that have been built or are in the process of being built.
The Canada Line in Vancouver which has been in operation since 2008 is
a great example where it has connected both the airport and the suburbs to
downtown. In this project based on the P3 model we played a leading role
in financing, designing, building and now operate and maintain the system.
As a matter of fact, we partnered with the Caisse de depot on this project.
We are also currently completing the Evergreen Line in Vancouver which is
also a P3 project. Here it is interesting to see that residential and retail
development has been built along the alignment of the railway in
anticipation of the opening of the railway, not after the opening.
Another one of our projects, The Confederation Line in Ottawa, a P3
project that won Top PPP deal of the year in 2013 by Project Finance

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Magazine and that will result in significant economic benefits. The project
will stimulate the city’s economy and be a catalyst for the development of
mixed use communities, reduce demand on road traffic and make the city
cleaner, more efficient and more attractive to live, invest, work and play.
Eglinton Crosstown is another project that we have recently started
building, a 25 station LRT running across 19km. It is the largest transit
expansion in Toronto’s history. It will move people up to 60% faster than
the existing bus service, reduce traffic and create tens of thousands of jobs
in Toronto.
* * * *
SNC-Lavalin
Where we see our role in the successful implementation of both the current
projects and the future projects in Canada is in the whole life cycle of a
project.
From inception planning, to finance, detailed design, construction and
ultimately operation and maintenance of the transit system.
We are very pleased to see the commitment by Federal and Provincial
government to invest in transport infrastructure across Canada.

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I would also say again we are pleased to see the commitment to build the
Light Rail Project here in Montreal and look forward to see it running on the
Champlain Bridge, another one of our projects currently underway.
The Champlain bridge is obviously a key transport infrastructure project
here in Montreal replacing the aging existing bridge but also providing
economic benefit to employees and local suppliers here in Quebec.
* * * *
Success
So what do we think are the key success factors for developing effective
transport solutions?
Firstly Planning:
Political vision, financial commitment, an integrated transport solution that
allows for sustainable, growth in an urban environment are key.
Our transport systems were mostly built during the 20th century so working
in close partnership with different stakeholders, including the government
and the communities, is key to a project’s success.
Understanding and addressing a community’s concerns regarding any
disruption to their way of life and meeting governments’ concerns regarding

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the overall value of investing in a major project. Also factoring in how the
project will benefit the end-user.
Secondly User Experience:
A user experience does not start once they jump on board a transit. It starts
the minute they start planning their journey and ends once they’ve attained
their final destination.
Our experience has led us to identify that ease of access, cost-efficiency
and comfort are key elements that guide their choice of transportation.
Lastly – Consider Future Generations:
Projects planned now will service future generations.
Over the last decade, the ways we think, learn, work, build a family, take
care of our health, commute and consume have changed dramatically.
Interconnectivity, information and options for citizens have progressed at
every level. We have got used to an amplified ease of access in everything
we do.
* * * *
Conclusion
So in conclusion. Infrastructure is central to every aspect of life. It is a key
driver for productivity and growth and a critical contributor to the well-being

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of Canadians. That is why the Government’s current drive to invest in
Infrastructure is an opportunity for Canada.
As a company, we are very proud to contribute to Canada’s growth and we
work to ensure it will have positive outcome for our clients, our employees,
the environment and our communities.
Thank you for your time and attention.
I will now leave you with short video to showcase our achievements.