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stm bus

7 day trips from Montreal you can get to using the STM, from stunning parks to hidden gems

Are you stuck in Montreal this summer without a car, longing for adventure? Well, good news! The Island of Montreal is full of fun, scenic day trips accessible by the STM, making your next adventure only an OPUS card tap away.

Read on to discover eight Montreal staycation ideas complete with public transit itineraries. The STM directions assume a weekday departure from Berri-UQAM station, so if you're travelling on the weekend, you may have to change your route.

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The STM just overhauled 30 bus routes in 5 boroughs with lines eliminated, added and merged

If you ride Société de transport de Montréal (STM) busses, you may feel like you have your usual routes down to a science. But starting August 26, prepare to encounter major changes to 30 or so STM bus lines that could impact how you get around.

The STM's bus network overhaul, which came into effect on Monday, means that certain busses have been eliminated altogether and replaced or merged with other lines. It also means brand-new rush-hour high-frequency lines have been added and certain routes have been given different names.

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montreal bus

How Not To Be A D*ck On A Montreal Bus: 8 Terms & Conditions Of The Social Contract

Montreal bus drivers are among the city's most unsung heroes, despite serving a crucial role in connecting commuters to their work, loved ones, errands and escapades. As their grateful riders, we sit in the drivers' massive, ambling vehicles for but a brief moment. But in that time, much can happen, from the heartwarming (aww, that baby smiled at me!) to the deeply infuriating (that young adult is taking up five people's worth of space and I just want to RELAX).

We've all been the bad guy on the bus at least once in our lives — unless you're some kind of straightedge beacon of light and love who never forgets to give up their seat. Good for you, but the rest of us need a gentle reminder of the expectations in the social contract we sign every time we tap an OPUS card against those newfangled fare checkers.

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Montreal Metro & Bus Ticket Prices Are Going Up This Summer

Montrealers will have to pay a bit more for transit rides starting this summer. The regional transit authority, the ARTM, announced fare increases — by a weighted average of 3% — will take effect July 1. That means slightly higher prices for many Montreal metro and bus passes.

The changes affect all four fare zones: the Agglomeration of Montreal (Zone A), Laval and the Agglomeration of Longueuil (Zone B), the North and rest of the South Shore (Zone C), and the outlying municipalities of Marieville, Rigaud, Sainte-Madeleine, Sainte-Marie-Madeleine, Sainte-Martine, L’Épiphanie and Saint-Hyacinthe (Zone D).

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Montreal Is Carving Out Space From 4 More Major Streets To Create Reserved STM Bus Lanes

Montreal is set to add new reserved bus lanes to parts of four major thoroughfares, adding to its extensive network of public transit corridors. The city already claims to have the most kilometres of bus-only lanes on the continent. The additional lanes will bring Montreal's total to 300 kilometres, facilitating upwards of 20,000 daily trips, officials say.

The new lanes will be on chemin de la Côte-Saint-Luc and rue Sherbrooke Ouest in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, rue Provost in the borough of Lachine, and boulevard Saint-Laurent in the boroughs of Ahuntsic-Cartierville and Villeray–Saint-Michel–Parc-Extension.

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The STM Will Soon Be Free For Your Parents & Grandparents — Here's How They Can Get Their Fare

Starting July 1, 2023, the metro, bus, exo train and paratransit networks will be free for people age 65 and older on Montreal Island. As of April 19, qualifying riders can load their OPUS cards with the free fares, which will start working in July.

The STM and City of Montreal announced the measure in 2022 with the goal of making transit more accessible for seniors.

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Montreal Was Ranked Among The Best Cities In The World For Public Transit

A new ranking measuring the cities with the best public transit dropped and Montreal is the only Canadian city to have made the cut. Time Out released its ranking on April 3, 2023, and highlighted 19 cities across the globe that know a thing or two about public transportation.

In order for Time Out to identify the top 19 cities, the global magazine surveyed more than 20,000 city-dwellers across the world from more than 50 different cities.

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The STM Is Turning To AI To Tell You Where The Hell Your Bus Went

Instead of offering a blood sacrifice to the gods for a miraculous sign pointing you to the location of your missing bus, you can now turn to a robot — kind of. The STM has launched a new AI-powered tool to map bus detours and temporary stops.

The tool works by tracking real-time bus locations using STM data and the Transit app. According to the STM, the tool updates route maps when it detects that three buses in a row on a given line have detoured. It can also pinpoint the location of temporary stops by tracking bus speeds.

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The Desperately Broke STM Is Hacking Away At Its Costs... Again

The STM will continue to hack away at its costs with a goal of saving $18 million in 2023. If successful, these cuts would bring the transit company's deficit down to a mere $60 million.

So far, the STM says the spending reductions won't affect service. So customers wouldn't see changes to their bus or metro schedule this time around. Instead, the STM says it's focusing on non-recurring internal expenses.

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The STM Is Launching A New Health Service Bus Line, But It's Probably Not For Hypochondriacs

The STM is launching a new bus shuttle promising better access to nine health care institutions in Montreal's Nouveau-Rosemont neighbourhood. It's part of the mitigation measures surrounding the partial closure of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel.

The new 811 "Service Santé" bus will operate from Monday to Friday from 5.30 a.m to 8 p.m. starting January 16.

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The STM Plans To Cut Back Montreal Bus & Metro Service In 2023 Because It's Broke

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) is strapped for cash and planning to cut back on services as a result. The transit agency released its 2023 budget at the end of November showing a $77.7M deficit and citing inflation and pandemic recovery as major shortfall drivers.

Some expenses were pushed to 2022 to cover emergency measures during the onset of COVID-19, around the time that pricey but necessary maintenance projects began on AZUR trains.

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A Downtown Montreal Metro Station Is About To Close & Some Streets Will Be Narrowed For Weeks

Montreal is expecting as many as 12,000 delegates to descend on the city for the United Nations biodiversity conference, COP15, taking place at the Palais des congrès from December 7 to 19. And Montrealers will be feeling the squeeze. Major traffic disruptions, including a metro station and road closures, will plague the area around the convention centre in December. Some will last into January.

Here's what you need to know — and what streets to avoid.

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