Find My Country

In the mid-70s, Mirabel International Airport was believed to be a required step for the growth of Canada’s number 1 metropolis, Montreal. “The Airport of the Future!” it was proclaimed, with experts releasing predictions of 20 million passengers passing through Montreal every year by 1985 – far greater than the capacity at the existing airport of the time, Dorval. 500 million dollars were then expended to head off this potential disaster.

However, Mirabel was never needed – chalk it up as another in a long line of mid-1970s failures of our politicians, and society as a whole. Before the blink of an eye, political idiocy brought forth the downfall of Montreal, making Toronto the number one city in Canada. More and more airlines stopped their refuelling stops in Montreal. Among those still passing through Montreal, Mirabel was considered impractical as Dorval was much closer and convenient. Half-hearted measures, like forcing international flights to leave from Mirabel, had little effect on the airport. The absence of federal will to build a high speed rail system between Montreal and Mirabel, after spending nearly the equivalent of 3 billion dollars on this boondoggle, was a shining example of foolish bureaucrats who were all-too-eager to spend money to build an airport – but nothing to improve transportation in the area. The brutal traffic on Highway 40 by itself doomed Mirabel.

As a child, I always (mistakenly) thought Mirabel was used as the background for “Star Trek” movies, with its beautiful futuristic halls. Now, it can find new theatric life as the backdrop for a remake of “Planet of the Apes”. As an aside, I got a horrible headache and sore throat after entering this place – go at your own risk.

Once this four star hotel provided accomodations for the travel-weary. Now it is locked and shackled, with its treasured hospitality denied to all. Just like Mirabel, its potential wastes away, one day at a time.

The Multi-level parking at Mirabel is a twisted “Mirror Universe” version of Dorval’s. Instead of hundreds of cars paying 14$ a day, my lone Ford Mustang found itself circling around this barracaded structure until an opening presented itself in the old limosine parking lot. No one bothered to tell me I wasn’t allowed to park there – no police waste their time wandering this area.

Within this lonesome structure I can still hear the echoes of my cousins coming to Montreal for the first time. I remember one in particular – “Brother, Brother” he would cry as I met him for the very first time. I had just finished the 8th grade back then. Now, with two university degrees in hand, I return to the sound of absolute silence – the sound of my memories.

“Brother, Brother!” my cousin cried as we ran around the Airport. This airport was always my favourite – it had an arcade (with my favourite game being WWF Wrestlefest), some nice restaurants and a book store. I actually bought a Tintin book (“Land of the Black Gold”) from the Mirabel bookstore – something which remains in my collection to this day.

Mirabel will never reunite me with my cousin ever again. Nor will any other airport. He passed away many years ago.

Although my attempts to enter were all frustrated by padlocks, I still managed to see this from the distance. I still remember the plastic model of planes and the airport which was within this plastic dome. I used to wish I could move the little planes around with my hands – it really stimulated my imagination in a way few places could.

Skaters and skateboarders are the only people who use this facility anymore. It is the open failure of the municipal government that pushes these thrill-seeking kids to dangerous environs like Mirabel. Instead of opening skate parks, they prosecute them until they go to these deserted locations.

There is no more irritating failure in Montreal’s history than that of Mirabel. Despite all the whining about distance, Mirabel was not so far from Montreal. Narita International Airport, for example, is almost an hour and a half away from Tokyo. Narita, unlike Mirabel, has several high speed train links from several different train companies going there. However the Canadian Government (and by extension, the people) were not ready to build a high speed rail link to Mirabel, nor were they willing to improve the horrible road system that goes to Mirabel. If it wasn’t for the awful Highway 40, which is probably the worst highway in Canada, it is entirely possible to be in Mirabel in 30-40 minutes. This is not too much to ask in a world of 2-3 hour security checks for intenrational flights. However, fixing the problems in transportation would require spending money wisely – not useless metro extensions or stadiums that no one uses.

Despite the abandonment of Mirabel, the transportation problems which sealed its doom still exist. Traffic problems still exist in the form of prohibitively dense traffic over the Highway 40. Provincial irresponsibility has seen this highway deteriorate further to the point where a woman was nearly killed when pieces of the highway broke under her car. Daily traffic jams on this highway are at the feet of Pierre Trudeau, Brian Mulrouney, Rene Lesvesque, Robert Bourassa, and Jean Drapeau – the 5 people who could have improved this situation by building new transportation solutions between Montreal and Mirabel, but did not. It is bitter irony that Montreal’s biggest commercial street was renamed after Rene Lesvesque and its main airport was renamed after Pierre Trudeau. (In another bitter twist of the knife, I respect both men, and genuinely love Pierre Trudeau)

There will come a day where Montrealers, finally realizing what they have lost, will overcome their insipid beliefs in their “cultural superiority” and take firm measures to improve their city, which will make it the wealthiest city in the world. The day we overcome our foolish pride and our empty individualistic society, we will build great high speed rail systems that are the envy of the world, and make this city a pedestrian paradise. By law, “Pierre Elliot Trudeau” is the name given to any airport which services Montreal. I still believe the day will come when Pierre Elliot Trudeau Airport will refer to a beautiful glass-surrounded building near the city of Mirabel. If the province of Quebec is unwilling to assist in this because it doesn’t care about our votes, Montreal should cut off its welfare payments to the bankrupt province and create its own province. Without Montreal and Northern Native American lands, Quebec is a have-not agrarian province – it is high-time that we reminded them of that ironclad fact.