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Exo (public transit)

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Exo
An outbound train on the Mont-Saint-Hilaire Line
An outbound train on the Mont-Saint-Hilaire Line
A stylized icon of a train on a pink background
A stylized icon of a bus on a black background
Overview
LocaleGreater Montreal
Transit type
Number of lines
  • 5 (commuter rail)
  • 219 (bus)
[1]
Number of stations
  • 52 rail stations
  • 11 bus terminuses
[1]
Annual ridership
  • 44,737,400 (bus)
  • 6,147,995 (commuter rail)
  • 652,719 (paratransit)
  • 69,164 (on demand)
(2023)[1]
Chief executiveSylvain Yelle
Headquarters700 rue de la Gauchetière, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Websiteexo.quebec/en Edit this at Wikidata
Operation
Began operation
  • 1859 (first section)
  • January 1, 1996 (as AMT)
  • June 1, 2017 (2017-06-01) (as Réseau de transport métropolitain/Exo)[2]
Operator(s)Alstom
Reporting marksEXO
Infrastructure manager(s)
Number of vehicles
  • 41 locomotives
  • 206 passenger cars (2023) [1]
Network map as of July 2023

Exo, stylized as exo and officially known as Réseau de transport métropolitain (RTM; English: Metropolitan Transportation Network), is a public transport system in Greater Montreal, including the Island of Montreal, Laval (Île Jésus), and communities along both the North Shore of the Mille-Îles River and the South Shore of the St. Lawrence River. It was created on June 1, 2017, taking over Montreal's commuter rail services from the former Agence métropolitaine de transport as well as bus and paratransit services from the various suburban municipal and intermunicipal transit agencies.[3] Exo operates the second busiest such system in Canada after Toronto's GO Transit.[citation needed]

Exo's territory is concurrent with Montreal Metropolitan Community limits, with the addition of the Kahnawake First Nations reserve and the city of Saint-Jérôme.[4] It serves a population of approximately 4 million people who make more than 174,000 trips daily in the 4,258.97 km2 (1,644.40 sq mi) area radiating from Montreal.[5][1]

Partners in transport

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Exo's parent agency, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM), is charged with transportation planning for the Greater Montreal area.

Exo operates commuter train service as well as the bus service outside of the three main population centres of Greater Montreal. In these areas service is provided by the Société de Transport de Montréal on the Island of Montreal, the Société de Transport de Laval in Laval, and the Réseau de transport de Longueuil for the urban agglomeration of Longueuil.

Commuter rail

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Main article: Exo commuter rail
This section is an excerpt from Exo commuter rail.[edit]

Exo commuter rail (reporting marks EXO) is a network of five radial commuter train lines serving the Greater Montreal area, operated by Alstom (formerly Bombardier Transportation), using trackage owned by Exo as well as by Canadian National and Canadian Pacific Kansas City.[6][7]

Exo's commuter trains are its highest-profile division. It uses diesel-electric push-pull trains. The Mont-Saint-Hilaire and Mascouche lines run on Canadian National trackage and operate out of Central Station, while the Vaudreuil-Hudson, Saint-Jérôme, and Candiac lines run on Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) trackage and operate out of Lucien L'Allier terminus, beside the historic Windsor Station. The Saint-Jérôme line also runs on CPKC trackage and on Exo's own trackage between Sainte-Thérèse and Saint-Jérôme.[8]

Operation of all commuter rail was provided by contract to CN and CP (on their respective rail networks) until June 30, 2017. Operations were taken over by Bombardier Transportation beginning July 1, 2017, on an 8-year contract.[9]

The interior of an Exo commuter train

The train lines are part of Greater Montreal's integrated public transit network including bus, regional light rail (REM) and Metro, coordinated by the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM).[10] Many train stations serve local bus terminals, and a few provide connections to Metro, REM and Via Rail and Amtrak national rail services.

Commuter train lines
Train lines Line length Start Terminus
Vaudreuil–Hudson 51.2 km (31.8 mi) 1887 Hudson Lucien-L'Allier
Saint-Jérôme 62.8 km (39.0 mi) 1882 Saint-Jérôme Lucien-L'Allier
Mont-Saint-Hilaire 34.9 km (21.7 mi) 1859 Mont-Saint-Hilaire Gare Centrale
Candiac 25.6 km (15.9 mi) 1887 Candiac Lucien-L'Allier
Mascouche 52 km (32 mi) 2014 Mascouche Gare Centrale

Fares

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As of July 1, 2022, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) which is responsible for the distribution of fares in the Greater Montreal area has designated 4 zones on its territory A, B, C and D. The Island of Montreal is under zone A. Laval and Longueuil are part of zone B. The northern and southern suburbs of Montreal (off-island) are part of zone C. Zone D is territory not under the authority of the ARTM but it is still responsible for the distribution of fares there as well. [11]

If a trip starts and ends on the island of Montreal, an all modes zone A fare is required. This includes all modes of public transit (i.e. bus, Metro, REM or Exo). If a trip leaves zone A (Montreal) then a fare for the corresponding zone is required. For example, a trip between Montreal and Laval will require an all modes AB fare. Fares are valid for 120 minutes after the first validation. There are no fare gates; instead, a proof-of-payment system is used, where fare inspectors randomly check tickets

All fares are available in a cheaper "reduced" category for children 6 to 17 years old, and seniors that are 65 or older. Additionally, monthly passes are available in a "student" category (which is cheaper than the regular fare but more than the reduced fare) for students 18 to 25 years old. To benefit from the reduced or student fares, the passenger must have a reduced-fare Opus card with their name and photo on it. Travel on the commuter trains is free for anyone 5 and under as well as a maximum of 5 children 6 to 11 years old per person 14 and up traveling with them.

Following the introduction of the Opus, smart card system tickets and passes are now sold by automated vending machines at each station. The machines accept cash, credit and debit cards. Purchases of more than $80 must be paid by cards. Tickets and passes are also sold at a few stores near the suburban stations. Consult the full list on the RTM's website.[12][13] Passes are valid for a calendar month, and are normally on sale from the 20th of the previous month to the 5th of their month of validity. Passengers can also subscribe to OPUS+ which automatically debits the passenger's bank account or credit card and adds the pass to the passenger's Opus card.

History

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See also: Exo commuter rail § History, and Exo bus services § History

A regional transit agency in Greater Montreal was first created by the Quebec government in 1995 with the Agence métropolitain de transport, with the mandate of developing, coordinating and promoting transit throughout the area; improve and develop the commuter rail network, and; encourage integration of different modes of transit. On December 20, 1996, the AMT took over responsibility of the commuter trains from the Société de transport de la Communauté urbaine de Montréal (STCUM).[14]

On June 1, 2017, the AMT was disbanded in a reorganization of metropolitan transit authorities. A new agency, the Réseau de transport métropolitain (RTM) was created to be responsible for operating commuter rail and suburban transit services.[15]

In May 2018, the RTM adopted the Exo brand (stylized exo, all-lowercase), to represent the sub- and exurban nature of its service area.[16]

Buses

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An Exo commuter bus in Downtown Montreal.
An Exo commuter coach at Mansfield Terminal in Downtown Montreal, headed for Sainte-Martine.
Main article: Exo bus services

Exo runs multiple bus lines through its subsidiaries serving Montréal suburbs.

Exo operates all commuter bus services for the North Shore and South Shore suburbs, excepting the cities of Longueuil and Laval, which have their own transit agencies.

Ridership

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In 2018, Exo carried 174,710 passengers on a typical weekday — 77,210 on the trains and 97,500 by commuter bus, including adapted transport.

Number of Passenger Trips (2023)[1]
Rail lines
Vaudreuil–Hudson line 2,263,792
  
Saint-Jérôme line 2,085,468
  
Mont-Saint-Hilaire line 780,760
  
Candiac line 677,144
  
Mascouche line 340,861
  
Subtotal — Rail lines 6,147,995
Bus routes
Exo North Shore buses 8,217,932
  
Exo South Shore buses 6,737,806
  
Exo Paratransit 652,719
  
Transit on demand 69,164
  
Subtotal — Bus system 15,677,621
Total — Exo System 21,825,616

Future projects

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Vaudreuil–Hudson Line

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Main article: Vaudreuil–Hudson line

To increase service on the Vaudreuil-Hudson Line, there are plans to add dedicated tracks for commuter trains. The current tracks are used by Exo under permission from Canadian Pacific Kansas City. On July 1, 2010, service to Rigaud was discontinued, due to Rigaud's reluctance to pay annual fees; the rail line now ends at Hudson.[17]

Candiac Line

[edit]
Main article: Candiac line

The possibility of extending the Candiac Line to Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and Saint-Philippe was examined by the Quebec Government in 2014. In 2016, the study's final report rejected that option, citing longer travel times by train for people in the area.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f "Rapport annuel 2023" (PDF). Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  2. ^ Décarie, Jean-Philippe (2017-05-15). "L'objectif de la mobilité intégrée" [The Objective of Integrated Mobility]. La Presse (in French). Retrieved 2024-09-03.
  3. ^ "Status, mandates and territory". Exo. Retrieved 2024-10-10.
  4. ^ Act respecting the Réseau de transport métropolitain (RLRQ, c. R-25.01, section 3)
  5. ^ "À propos" [About] (in French). Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain. Retrieved 2024-10-15.
  6. ^ "Bombardier aux commandes des trains de banlieue du Réseau de transport métropolitain" [Bombarider in the driver's cab of the Réseau de transport métropolitain's commuter trains] (in French). Réseau de transport métropolitan. 2017-06-22. Retrieved 2024-11-27.
  7. ^ "The challenge of coordinating train traffic in winter". Exo. 2019-01-03. Retrieved 2024-11-27.
  8. ^ "The challenge of coordinating train traffic in winter". Exo. 2019-01-03. Retrieved 2024-11-27.
  9. ^ Agence QMI (2017-07-03). "Retour à la normale sur le réseau de trains de banlieue" [Back to normal on the commuter train network] (in French). TVA Nouvelles. Retrieved 2024-11-29.
  10. ^ "À propos" [About us] (in French). Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain. Retrieved 2024-11-18.
  11. ^ "ARTM – Fare reform". Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain | ARTM. Retrieved 2022-09-06.
  12. ^ "Exo - Metropolitan ticket offices and sales outlets".
  13. ^ "Exo – OPUS card".
  14. ^ Barrieau, Pierre. "L'Évolution des trains de banlieue montréalais : 170 ans de service (1847 - 2017)" [The Evolution of Montreal Suburban Rail: 170 Years of Service (1847 - 2017)] (PDF) (in French). Université de Québec à Montréal.
  15. ^ "Nouvelle gouvernance dans les transports collectifs" [New governance in public transit] (Press release) (in French). Réseau de transport métropolitain. 2017-06-01. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
  16. ^ "Le Réseau de transport métropolitain devient exo" [The Réseau de transport métropolitain becomes exo] (in French). Exo. 2018-05-23. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  17. ^ Montreal Gazette: "All aboard for the last train to Rigaud", April 23, 2010. Archived April 26, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
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