The STM announces the creation of line 41 – Quartier Saint-Michel / Ahuntsic

Press release

Montréal, March 14, 2011   The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) announces the creation of a new bus line starting March 28 that will provide local service in the Saint-Michel sector, while offering direct access to the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough by circumventing the nearby quarries.

“This initiative is in line with our aim to improve bus service as needed in target sectors so as to promote local travel. By going around the quarries located in the Saint-Michel sector, transfers are minimized and travel time optimized, thus facilitating travel to the Ahuntsic sector and access to the principal points of interest in the Saint-Michel sector for the majority of residents, all while providing a direct link to the métro,” declared Mme Jocelyn Ann Campbell, member of the STM’s Board of Directors and city councillor for the Saint-Sulpice district in the Borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville.

Implemented as part of the service improvement program, which is financed in equal parts by the Quebec government and the Ville de Montréal, line 41 – Quartier Saint-Michel / Ahuntsic is the result of close collaboration with the boroughs of Villeray – Saint-Michel – Parc-Extension and Ahuntsic-Cartierville as well as Vivre Saint-Michel en santé (VSMS).

“Saint-Michel has been under-served by public transit for a long time due to the presence of two quarries that make it difficult to travel from one end of the sector to the other. The creation of line 41 will help fill this gap by making travel by public transit easier for Saint-Michel residents. This initiative, long awaited by our citizens, also confirms my administration’s ongoing efforts to solve the east-west travel problem in the sector. I would like to thank the community organizations, particularly Vivre Saint-Michel en santé, the STM, our department of culture, sports, leisure and social development and the citizens of Saint-Michel who contributed to the realization of this project,” stated Mme Anie Samson, Mayor of the Borough of Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension.

“The arrival of line 41 – Quartier Saint-Michel / Ahuntsic is excellent news as it will improve the quality of service in Ahuntsic. In addition to making travel easier for hundreds of residents, I am pleased to see that transit users will namely have direct access to the businesses at La Promenade Fleury ” added Mr. Pierre Gagnier, Mayor of the Borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville.

Line 41 – Quartier Saint-Michel / Ahuntsic will operate Monday to Friday, from 5:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. (at approximately 20-minute intervals throughout the day). Its route will include L-J-Papineau and J-F-Perrault schools, CÉGEP Ahuntsic, le Boulevard and Forrest shopping centres, la Promenade Fleury as well as CLSC Saint-Michel. In addition, the new service will provide a connection to the Saint-Michel and Sauvé métro stations, located on the blue and orange lines respectively.

“The arrival of line 41 will ease the east-west travel problems caused by the sector’s isolation that were identified more than 20 years ago,” explained Yves Lévesque, Director-General of Vivre Saint-Michel en santé. “We are very pleased to have contributed to the implementation of this new line along with the STM as well as a half-dozen partners and the citizens of the Saint-Michel sector.”

It should be noted that these improvements represent an increase of approximately 21 000 hours of service per year and will require the addition of six buses.

Clients are invited to consult the spring Planibus timetable for the schedule for this line. For any other information on routes, clients can call STM-INFO (514-786-4636), consult the Network Map or visit the STM’s Internet site (www.stm.info), which features additional useful information.

–  30 –