My Alerts 
Starting today: aunch of new bus service in southwestern Montréal
Montréal, August 26, 2024 – With back-to-school season in full swing, the Société de transport de Montréal (STM) would like to inform customers that its fall bus service starts today. It would also like to remind them of today’s launch of the bus network redesign in southwestern Montréal and of the various trip-planning tools at their disposal.
Transit fares made easy
Customers can now reload their OPUS cards on the Chrono mobile app. All it takes is a simple download to start purchasing fares this way.
Once again this year, student transit customers are encouraged to renew or obtain their photo OPUS cards online via their student portals if they attend one of over a hundred participating institutions. For more information, visit.
Trip-planning tools
Information on bus detours is available in connection with road network barriers. To find out if there is a major detour on your bus line, go to the STM home page and enter the bus number in the Schedules and Maps tab. This will show you the route map, including any detours and the locations of temporary stops.
Launch of new bus service in southwestern Montréal
The bus network redesign overhauled bus service in five boroughs: Lachine, LaSalle, Verdun, Sud-Ouest, and the southern part of Ville-Marie. To help customers with the transition, the STM has been running a locally targeted information campaign combining digital and social media with signage in the bus and métro networks for the past several weeks. For more information on the new routes, schedules, and travel options, customers are encouraged to use the trip planner in the Your Trip tab on the STM home page: https://www.stm.info/en. In addition, a school page is now available.
STM representatives are on the ground today to provide information and help customers with their travel needs during the launch. Temporary signage has been installed in some 20 métro stations to remind customers of the changes (e.g., different stops, new bus numbers). In addition, the temporary signage will be gradually replaced by the permanent signage.
Reserved lanes for better public transit
The STM has been collaborating with the boroughs of southwestern Montréal for years to create a vast network of reserved lanes. Reserved lanes improve bus service overall, making it fast, predictable, and on time. The lanes in this area will directly benefit the new bus network, specifically lines 35, 57, 71, 90, 101, 106, 107, 110, 112, 113, 114, 123, 190, 195, 198, 491 and 496. Reserved lanes and other bus preferential measures allow the STM to offer more reliable and comfortable bus service to new and existing public transit customers. The southwest reserved lanes will be in effect during rush hour in the following locations:
- Notre-Dame West (Saint-Pierre Avenue to Place Turcot West)
- Provost (31st Avenue to 1st Avenue)
- Des Trinitaires (Newman Boulevard to De la Vérendrye Boulevard)
- Saint-Patrick (Monk Boulevard to Atwater Avenue)
- Saint-Jacques (Décarie Boulevard to De Courcelles Street)
- Wellington (De la Sucrerie Street to Gilberte Dubé Street)
- Robert-Bourassa (René-Lévesque Boulevard to Saint-Jacques Street)
The rush-hour reserved lane on Notre-Dame Street West will also be extended as part of the bus network redesign. The new section will go into effect later this fall, joining the existing section on that axis. As a further improvement, buses 190, 491 and 496 now provide a direct connection from Lachine to Lionel-Groulx station.
About the bus network redesign
In 2018, the STM began collaboratively redesigning its surface network to be more efficient and appealing, while better accounting for mobility needs and urban development in Montréal. Using five guiding principles, the STM sought input from representatives, experts, the general public, and communities across the city on how it could improve the customer experience by changing the design and architecture of its surface network. Changes are being introduced gradually in conjunction with new major public transit projects, with sector consultations held at various stages. For more information on the bus network redesign, visit.
Quotes
“In this busy back-to-school season, I’d like to commend the STM on all it has done to offer accessible, appealing, and high-quality public transit service despite the challenging economy of the last several years,” says Éric Alan Caldwell, chair of the STM Board of Directors. “Upgrading bus service in the southwest without any increase in budget is an excellent example of how we are improving public transit for communities all over Montréal—a process that will continue next year with the arrival of the REM in the West Island. At the same time, we understand that the bus network redesign involves a lot of changes that require a great deal of adaptability from our customers, so we encourage them to use our trip planner get the information about their new routes.”
“Our operational and planning teams in the bus, métro, and paratransit networks are ready to welcome customers aboard and provide them with safe, reliable transportation,” says Marie‑Claude Léonard, CEO of the STM. “Every day, our people coordinate and deliver public transit services throughout Montréal while working hard to respond to a multitude of ever‑changing factors, including road hazards, customer travel needs, and ridership levels—which have increased by 12% over 2023 since the start of the year. Our métro management team is always on hand to meet your needs and deliver the best customer experience possible. You can find them by looking for the blue STM vests. In a few weeks, we’ll also roll out an awareness campaign to remind our customers of best practices when taking public transit.”