Latest news with #Autoritérégionaledetransportmétropolitain
Montreal Gazette
5 days ago
- Business
- Montreal Gazette
‘Technical reasons' delay launch of Opus card app for commuters with iPhones
News Montreal commuters will be able to trade their Opus cards for an app this fall, the regional transit authority says — as long as they have an Android. iPhone users will have to wait until 2026. The virtual Opus card is the latest in a broader bid to modernize payment options for Montreal-area transit. In April 2024, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) launched an app allowing transit users to load their Opus card by tapping it to their phone. This latest project will allow riders to ditch the physical card for an app. After that, the agency plans to allow users to tap their credit or debit cards directly to the fare reader, a technology it has already deployed in Laval. Digital payment options have been slower to get off the ground in Montreal than elsewhere, admitted Sylvain Perras, ARTM executive director of digital transformation. 'We probably started later,' he said. 'We're now working on catching up.' Commuters in cities including Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa can already board transit with a tap of a credit or debit card. Testing is underway for the virtual Opus card, Perras said. Fewer than 200 employees have been using the app in a trial since June, he said, and the agency invited 600 commuters to download the app Thursday. Android users will have access to the app sometime this fall, Perras said, without providing an exact date. 'It could be October, November.' The iPhone app has been slower to get off the ground, Perras said, citing 'technical reasons,' without offering specifics. About 61 per cent of Canadian smartphone users have an iPhone, while about 39 per cent use Android, according to web traffic analysis website StatCounter. Perras wouldn't provide a detailed timeline for the app's rollout, insisting he didn't want to make promises that might not be kept. But he said all commuters should be able to download virtual Opus cards at some point in 2026. New payment options should help improve ridership numbers, Perras said, adding some people avoid public transit when it seems too complicated. This story was originally published July 18, 2025 at 12:31 PM.
Montreal Gazette
29-06-2025
- Business
- Montreal Gazette
Cost of getting around rising about 3% Tuesday
Montrealers will pay more to ride public transit as of Tuesday, when planned fare increases will take hold. Set by the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain, the Montreal region's transit authority, the increases will hike the price for most public transit fares by an average of three per cent. The transit authority sets the new fare rates every year based on inflation, though says it aims to limit the financial effects for riders. The cost of a monthly pass for Zone A, which covers the island of Montreal, will increase from $100 to $104.50. Those qualifying for a reduced monthly pass now pay $60 per month, but will soon pay $62.75. Bundles of 10 regular fares will increase to $34.25 from the current $33.25 and to $23 from $22.25 for seniors and students. Single and two-trip regular fares will remain priced at $3.75 and $7 and at $2.75 and $5 for seniors and students. The complete list of new fares across all zones is .
Montreal Gazette
28-05-2025
- Montreal Gazette
ARTM stops running shuttles during REM operating hours
Effective Monday, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain and CDPQ Infra ended the shuttle bus services operating along the REM route during the hours the light-rail network is running. In a statement issued on Saturday, the ARTM said the move follows a recent period of stability and reliable performance by the REM, which has been able to meet user needs effectively. The bus lines, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal and the Réseau de transport de Longueuil, which previously ran along the Samuel-De Champlain Bridge corridor, will no longer be in service during the day on weekdays. Low ridership levels on these shuttles were cited as the primary reason for their discontinuation during the day. The following bus routes will continue operating during hours when the REM is currently closed but would normally operate, from 8:20 p.m. to 1 a.m. on weekdays and 5:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. on weekends: 568, between Gare Centrale and Île-des-Soeurs 720, between Île-des-Soeurs, Panama, Du Quartier and Brossard 721, between Gare Centrale, Du Quartier and Brossard 722, between Gare Centrale and Panama 'In recent weeks, the REM has regained a level of stability and reliability, allowing it to provide the predictability users expect,' CDPQ Infra president and CEO Jean-Marc Arbaud said in the statement. The REM shuttles started after disruptions were caused by record snowfalls in February. Further disruptions after service resumed prompted Quebec Transport Minister Geneviève Guilbault to demand the shuttles keep running even when the REM was in service. The REM will continue operating weekdays only until 8 p.m. until July 4, when the system will shut down entirely for six weeks as part of network-wide testing to prepare for the launch of the Deux-Montagnes and Anse-à-l'Orme branches, scheduled for October. An exception will be made for Grand Prix weekend, June 13 to 15, when the REM will run all day and evening. On Tuesday, REM service was interrupted again for more than 30 minutes during the morning rush hour. A 'technical issue' was cited as the reason. Shuttle buses were deployed. This story was originally published May 5, 2025 at 4:18 PM.
Montreal Gazette
30-04-2025
- Business
- Montreal Gazette
Montreal-area transit fares to rise by 3% in July
By The majority of public transit fares in the Montreal metropolitan area will increase by an average of three per cent starting July 1, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) announced on Wednesday. The transit authority said the limited indexation is a 'responsible and necessary choice' in the current economic context, intended to balance financial sustainability with affordability for passengers. A single trip in Zone A (the Montreal agglomeration) will remain at $3.75, but a monthly pass will go up to $104.50 from $100. A Zone AB ticket (covering the STM, STL and RTL service areas) will cost $5, up from $4.75, and a monthly pass will be $164.50, up from $160. 'In the current economic context, the ARTM is making the responsible and necessary choice to maintain the indexation of the fare grid for public transit tickets in the Montreal metropolitan area at three per cent,' said director general Benoît Gendron. 'This measure helps limit the financial impact on customers, while ensuring that we can continue to offer a reliable and efficient service.' Special fares for RTL and REM users will see the biggest jump — 12 per cent — as the ARTM moves toward phasing them out in favour of Zone AB fares. Legacy train-only passes and TRAM passes for the former Zones 4 and 6 will no longer be offered as of July 1. Full details of the updated fare schedule, including specific pricing for various ticket types, are available at
