It was in 2005 that the project started evolving faster as Marc Bureau, defeated Yves Ducharme for mayor of Gatineau in the municipal elections. During his campaign, Bureau listed the Rapibus system as one of his top priorities. A few months after his election win, talks between the City of Gatineau and the Quebec government in order to strike a deal for the amount of funding for the project. Some members of the Gatineau City Council, Mayor Bureau, STO administration staff and Cabinet Ministers of the Quebec provincial government including former Finance Minister Michel Audet and Transport Minister Michel Després along with Treasury Board President Monique Jérôme-Forget met in Quebec City on December 6, 2006, to discuss about the deal and how much each level will spend. Following the meeting, Bureau indicated some optimism about a future deal that would guarantee a $150 million funding by the government. However, the Minister responsible for the Outaouais region Benoît Pelletier told reporters in February 2007 that it would be difficult to realize the project in a short period and no funding was announced in the 2007 Quebec budget on February 20, 2007, prior to the provincial elections. Quebec Premier Jean Charest later promised during the electoral campaign that the project will be completed for 2010 while pledging $75 million for the project.