The Montreal metro system has over 68 stations connecting points all over the island as well as the South Shore and Laval to the north. The metro uses rubber-wheeled cars designed by Bombardier to be quiet and efficient, and even though it is aging, it is still one of the quietest underground transit systems in the world. The STM claims that since its inception in 1966, it has transported the equivalent of the entire world’s population.
The metro system is composed of 4 lines:
The Green line runs through downtown, starting all the way out in the west at Angrignon and ending at Honoré-Beaugrand in Tétreaultville in the east.
The Orange line also serves downtown, but while it runs parallel to the Green line through the main business and commercial core, it connects two very different parts of the city, the town of St. Laurent to the northwest, and Laval across the water to the north.
The Orange and Green metro lines can be considered the most important in the entire network, and they bear most of the daily traffic as people go to and from work or school.
The Blue line starts in Snowdon and extends eastward to Saint-Michel. The Blue line intersects the Orange line twice, and serves the educational corridor that contains several universities, as well as a sizeable residential population.
The Yellow line is an exception, serving only three stops: Berri-UQAM, the main hub of the entire metro system, Jean-Drapeau, which is located on Ile-Notre-Dame in the middle of the St. Lawrence, and Longueuil on the South Shore.
An aging system
The metro system does not run 24 hours a day like many of the other transit systems of its type. Most service starts around 5:00 AM and is finished by 1:00 AM, with slightly longer hours on weekends and some holidays. The reason for this night-time shutdown is because the equipment used on the metro lines is close to five decades old, and as a result it requires extensive maintenance in order to remain operational. This is inconvenient for many, although the city does supplement their metro service with a special night bus schedule.
Fares and fees
It currently costs $2.75 to ride the metro – the same as riding the bus. Tickets can be purchased at a discount in groups of 6 (it’s called a lisière). It is also possible to buy a weekly pass and a monthly pass that will give you access to the entire public transit network. A weekly pass is $19.25 and a monthly pass or CAM (Carte Acces Metro) will run you $66.25. Montreal’s transit company, the STM, recently decided to introduce a smart card to compliment their current magnetic pass system. The Opus card, as it is called, can be loaded with different fares and then used at a later date. You can also put money on the Opus card via credit card which was not an payment option before.
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