Mont-Sainte-Anne Orders Three New Lifts in $100 Million Overhaul

Quebec Resort Finally Commits to Long-Awaited Lift Replacement Program

Mont-Sainte-Anne has placed orders for three new lifts in what amounts to a $100 million CAD ($71.75 million USD) infrastructure overhaul. The investment, split between resort operator Resorts of the Canadian Rockies and the Quebec government, includes a $50 million provincial loan - which tells you something about the financial structure here.

The announcement represents a significant commitment for a resort that's been plagued by lift reliability issues in recent years, particularly with its gondola. Whether this constitutes catching up on deferred maintenance or genuine modernisation depends on your perspective, though the capacity increases suggest it's a bit of both.

The Three Lift Replacements

The Southern Express (Express du Sud) will be replaced with a detachable six-pack bubble chair, consolidating two existing lifts - the current high-speed quad Southern Express and the Tortue chairlift. Capacity increases from the current setup to 2,400 people per hour, with a ride time of 7.28 minutes. The resort claims this is "four times faster" than its predecessor, though that comparison appears to reference the old fixed-grip Tortue rather than the detachable quad it's also replacing.

The Shooting Star gondola (L'étoile filante) - which has earned its reputation through multiple incidents since 2020 - will be replaced with 10-passenger OMEGA IV cabins, up from the current eight-passenger configuration. The new gondola will move 2,600 people per hour with a 7.42-minute journey time and 65 cabins. This is the replacement everyone's been waiting for, given the gondola's troubled history.

The North Express (L'Express du Nord) becomes a six-pack chairlift, replacing both the existing high-speed quad and the L'Échappée surface lift. Capacity hits 2,600 per hour with a 4.62-minute ride time. The repositioned lift line will clear towers from the La Paradeuse trail and improve access to expert terrain.

All three lifts are being supplied by Doppelmayr, manufactured at their Canadian facility - which at least simplifies the logistics and presumably the ongoing parts supply.

Timeline and Additional Projects

Southern Express is scheduled for February 2027, Shooting Star for December 2027, and North Express for December 2028. That's a three-year rollout, which is reasonable for a project of this scale but means skiers and riders will be dealing with construction disruption across multiple seasons.

The resort has also announced snowmaking upgrades promising a 30% increase in production with a 30% reduction in energy use - standard efficiency gains from modern equipment. There's mention of base area real estate development and a mountain coaster, because apparently every resort needs one now.

The Context You Need

Mont-Sainte-Anne, located near Quebec City, has spent recent years better known for its operational problems than its terrain. The resort was forced to close by Quebec authorities in December 2025 until lift issues were resolved - a fairly dramatic intervention that underscores how serious the safety concerns had become.

This isn't the resort's first announcement about major investment. A partnership between RCR and the Quebec government was flagged in late 2024, but this represents the actual commitment with contracts signed and delivery schedules confirmed. The difference between announcing plans and placing orders matters - plenty of resorts talk about upgrades that never materialise.

The $100 million investment is significant for a regional Quebec resort, though the reliance on a $50 million government loan raises questions about the financial viability of the project without public support. It's not unusual in the Canadian ski industry - governments often subsidise resort infrastructure as economic development - but it's worth noting.

The real test will be execution. Three years of construction, government loan repayments, and the expectation that new lifts will reverse years of reputation damage is a substantial undertaking. The specifications look solid - six-packs with good capacity, modern gondola cabins, improved lift alignments - but the mountain doesn't become a different resort just because the lifts are newer.

What this does achieve is bringing Mont-Sainte-Anne's infrastructure closer to current standards and, critically, replacing a gondola that had become a legitimate safety concern. That's not exciting, but it's necessary. Whether the investment translates to a better on-mountain experience or just catches the resort up to where it should have been five years ago remains to be seen.