STM commissions two new elevators at Jolicoeur station

Press release

A record year for métro network accessibility with 6 stations made accessible.

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) is announcing the commissioning of two new elevators today at Jolicoeur station, bringing the number of accessible métro stations up to 25.

“Jolicoeur was the sixth station made accessible in a single year—after Place-des-Arts, Mont-Royal, Pie-IX, Villa-Maria and Angrignon—a new record for the STM! This was a real tour de force from our teams, as on average two to three stations are made accessible per year since the implementation of the Accessibility program,” says Eric Alan Caldwell, Chair of the STM Board of Directors. “This achievement demonstrates our desire and commitment to facilitating métro network mobility for all customers, including those with functional limitations, as well as older adults, families with young children, and travellers with luggage.”

Overall work at Jolicoeur began in fall 2019 and was completed at a cost of $23.5 million. The accessibility work involved expanding the entrance building to accommodate the two new elevators. A curtain wall—a wall made entirely of glass—was also built to preserve the station’s unique architecture. Additionally, two ventilation shafts were added to the two existing natural ventilation shafts, which were expanded, in order to improve the comfort and safety of metro users.

As previously announced, a sculpture was also unveiled last June at the station. Titled Perspective and created by artist Chloé Desjardins, the piece was commissioned in accordance with the Politique d’intégration des arts à l’architecture et à l’environnement des bâtiments et des sites gouvernementaux et publics. The piece reflects the opposition between transparency and opacity, as well as some of the principles developed by celebrated German architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, whose international style influenced the architect of Jolicoeur station, Claude Boucher.

Photos

Click on the image to download it in high resolution. Photo credits: Julien Perron-Gagné.

3rd photo: Mme Laurence Parent,Borough Councillor for the De Lorimier district and Vice-Chair of the STM Board of Directors and M. Sylvain Le May, Paratransit users' representative on STM's Board of directors at the Jolicoeur station when elevators were commissioned.

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Other accessibility worksites in progress

There are currently six other accessibility projects underway in métro stations. The STM aims to make 30 stations accessible by 2025.

The Accessibility program is made possible through the additional funding announced by the federal and provincial governments to speed up accessibility work.