The New, Completely Accessible Mont-Royal Metro Station Entrance Is Finally Open (PHOTOS)

A new elevator is humming and wider turnstiles clicking at the freshly revamped and now universally accessible Mont-Royal metro station. The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) unveiled a streamlined layout on Tuesday that takes metro riders from the station’s new sunlit entrance to orange line platforms in either direction via one elevator ride, or a three-storey staircase.

The $50-million project has made the station interior three times larger than before with a less cramped route to and from the platforms.

The new station entrance also makes use of an entirely new façade made up of windows that allow natural light to permeate the interior.

People walk down and up the station's new sunlit staircase that connects the entrance with the first platform.@hoa.cha | Instagram

"STM teams completely demolished the entrance building without ever closing the station. We must recognize their ingenuity," said Chairman of the STM's Board of Directors Eric Alan Caldwell.

While construction is ongoing around the station and on the former pedestrian bridge that used to be the only way to get to the platforms, the station is now officially the 20th accessible station, out of 68 total, on the STM map.

"Now, everyone will have easier access to the neighbourhood, to avenue du Mont-Royal and to the area's unique commercial and cultural offerings. Our administration and the STM have a firm desire to eliminate obstacles for people with reduced mobility and to offer an ever more inclusive city and spaces to Montrealers," said District Councilor for De Lorimier and Vice-Chair of the STM Board of Directors Laurence Parent.

A new elevator between the front and back entrances to the station takes people directly to both orange line platforms.@hoa.cha | Instagram

When finished this fall, the expansion will feature two elevators, a green roof, and a work of art.

The station's green roof has several advantages, including reducing heat islands in the city, purifying the air and encouraging biodiversity.

Meanwhile, the planned station artwork, titled Je reviens chez nous by artist Simon Bilodeau, will constitute a three-wall mosaic reaching more than four metres high. The design will reference the station's architecture and history.

The next station that the network plans to make fully accessible is Place-des-Arts.

11 Montreal metro stations are currently undergoing work to achieve universal accessibility: Place-des-Arts, Angrignon, Berri-UQAM, Édouard-Montpetit, D'Iberville, Jolicoeur, McGill, Outremont, Pie-lX, Place Saint-Henri and Villa-Maria.

By 2025, the STM aims to have 30 metro stations that are universally accessible.