You'll Soon Be Able To Recharge A Montreal OPUS Card From Your Phone

The miserable monthly ritual of waiting in a line of undercaffeinated metro riders to recharge your Montreal OPUS card is coming to an end. Montreal's regional transit authority is officially moving forward with a plan to introduce mobile OPUS recharging, which would allow riders to buy transit passes from a smartphone.

The project is still in its early days. The Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) has so far only issued what's called a call for tenders (appel d'offres, in French) to seek a private-sector partner who can create a platform that would allow mobile OPUS purchases.

But the authority says its preliminary schedule calls for a public unveiling in the "first half of 2024." Though it specifies the exact timeline will depend on the supplier, once the ARTM selects one it deems adequate.

The call for tenders is currently scheduled to close on April 6, though the ARTM could extend it.

Mobile OPUS recharging has the potential to simplify the transit rider experience throughout the Montreal metropolitan area and beyond. The transit authority says the measure would benefit not only exo, REM, RTL, STL and STM riders in the metropolis and its suburbs, but also passengers in Quebec City, Lévis and Joliette, whose transit systems also use OPUS cards.

The plan for mobile ticket purchases is also part of the ARTM's larger "digital mobility program," which, in its words, "aims to modernize services to increase the use of sustainable modes of transportation, reduce traffic congestion and the environmental footprint of our travel."

In 2021, the ARTM introduced a smartphone tool through the Chrono app that allows OPUS cardholders to determine how many fares they have left.