'One single service': STM to manage adapted transit for the entire Montreal region
Once managed by four transit authorities in the Montreal region, all adapted transit rides for people with mobility difficulties will soon be the responsibility of the Société de transport de Montréal.
The transition has already begun. Since the beginning of the year, the STM has been in charge of adapted transit in Montreal and Laval.
However, as of Jan. 1, a new entity under the STM’s umbrella will be formed to manage all adapted transit across the 83 municipalities in the region represented by the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain. By the end of 2028, the plan is for the new entity to also provide rides in the regions covered by Exo and the Réseau de transport de Longueuil.
Users of adapted transit will all have the same number to call and same software to use online in order to book their rides. Since the STM eliminated adapted transit minibuses on its territory last year, all adapted transit rides in the region are done by taxis with adapted vans, which are contracted by the individual transit agencies.
“It means people will have access to one single service with the same norms and the same quality of service,” said Ludwig Desjardins, the executive director of development and performance for the ARTM. “For the customers, they will benefit from a better service altogether, and we will be able to do better with the resources that we have. We will even generate some savings.”
ARTM spokesperson Maxime Riopel said the transit authority has identified “a large potential” for savings.
Since the harmonization is expected to take place by the end of 2028, he said it was premature at this point to say exactly how much money may be saved through the process.
“The work is part of the overall recurring cost savings that the ARTM has promised as part of an agreement on financing with the (provincial) government,” Riopel said. “The gains will be achieved through better co-ordination, a reduction of certain redundancies and a more efficient use of resources.”
The service will allow the ARTM to use the same fleet of adapted taxis throughout the territory, which means a better use of resources and likely cost savings, Desjardins explained.
“To give you an example, as it stands now, taxi drivers are segregated to their own territories,” Desjardins said. “That means if a taxi driver takes someone from Montreal to Longueuil, he can’t pick up anyone in Longueuil — he has to go back to his home territory, and we pay for hours of service where he can’t drive anyone around.”
Asked if the new entity would have the same number of vehicles available to users of the region, Desjardins said it would be in charge of ensuring there is an adequate number of adapted transit vans for the entire region. Currently, in some of the areas outside the island, there are not enough taxi drivers to meet the demand, he said.
Desjardins specified that the same fare rates for Opus passes will continue to apply with the new entity.
“We will finance the STM and will fix performance indicators so the service responds to the needs and that wait times aren’t too long,” Desjardins said. “We are aware that the North and South Shore is a totally different region with a different set of circumstances than the centre of Montreal.”
Desjardins said there has not been any thought given to whether the new entity would have a new name or new logo, saying that is something to be discussed at a later date.
He reassured people of the region that the service given to those who need adapted transit will remain the same, in terms of driver training and the comfort of the vehicles.
“The drivers are trained, their vans are properly adapted. This is a service that is heavily regulated to ensure the quality, and this is something we hope to maintain and even improve,” he said.
He added that despite an increase in transit stations that are equipped with elevators throughout the network, the demand for adapted transit rides continues to increase.
“Demand for adapted transit is rising sharply because of the aging of the population and because more people now qualify for this service. We also have more services that are available to people with wheelchairs, like regular buses, the REM and in métro stations with elevators. Despite this, there will always be a clientele that can’t use the regular network and that will need to have an adapted service.”
Desjardins specified the new entity would only be in charge of delivering service for those with mobility difficulties. Any planning to improve the overall transit network, by adding ramps or elevators to stations, remains the responsibility of the ARTM.
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