New hybrid buses now on the STM network

Here’s some good news for STM customers to start the year: We have already received 32 of the 300 hybrid buses expected to arrive in 2020 and an average of 30 vehicles will continue to be delivered per month.

Customers travelling on routes in the south-western part of the island may have already climbed aboard one of these buses as the LaSalle bus garage is the first to receive them. This is a nice present for the garage, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary today!

The new buses can be identified by their serial number starting with “40-…”. They have two places for wheelchairs and USB chargers, in addition to air conditioning and sizeable fuel savings.

Eventually, the 300 new buses will increase the STM’s fleet by 15% and increase service by 5%. Starting in September, close to 3% of this increase will be devoted to improving service for new employment and development hubs, reducing crowding on certain lines and bolstering the measures deployed as part of “Mouvement orange.” The remainder of the increase will go towards mitigation measures further to the closure of the tunnel under Mount Royal as of March 31 2020 as part of the Réseau express métropolitain (REM) project.

More buses on the road

The STM is pleased to see that the measures implemented over the past few weeks are working as enough buses were on the road to serve those returning to work and school in early January. The STM is committed to ensuring that this situation remains stable in the long term and continues to carry out its action plan.

Several factors have contributed to the improved situation: the good work performed by maintenance employees, who doubled their efforts in the last few weeks, the return of several buses being maintained by external providers, mild winter conditions, and the arrival of the new hybrid buses.

Photo credit : STM/ Julien Perron-Gagné