Public Transportation

You can live perfectly the first period of your life with the public transportation.

It is safe, nice and good.

Although public transportation is good, there are few negatives in buses service that you may face but It is supported.

• In the winter, when it is a rush hour, the buses are really crowded.
• The bus for sure takes more time than the car. You will need to plan your schedule and events upon the bus availability.
• The bus do not go outside the town. For example in winter, the sky mountains and the “La Cabane à sucre” can’t be reached with bus.
• The bus takes more time than a car so the distance from the east to the west Island in weekends takes 1:30min and by car it is 30 mins.
• When there is snow, expect the bus to be late.
• There are less buses serving in the weekends

The following are information for Montreal.

I guess the Metro welcome message is the first thing we remember in French in Montreal.
“La STM vous souhaite la bienvenue à bord. Prochaine station, … ”

1. Bus Types

Blue: The normal bus covers all the day till 11pm or midnight I guess.
Green: The express bus covers certain hours only, the rush hours.
Black: The night bus covers the night shift ex-1am, 2am…

There is a “Between two stops service (for women who travel alone at night)”.

2. Knowing the next bus schedule while waiting on the bus stop

In case the bus schedule is not attached to the bus stop, you can call “514-AUTOBUS” then enter the 5 digits of the bus stop to know when the next bus is coming. Better to call if this place is strange to you because you may stay waiting and the bus never shows up .

This happened to me while waiting for a bus number 470 in Montreal and that was an express bus that works only in rush hours!

3. On the internet, use the travel planner before you leave

http://www2.stm.info/azimutsb/recherche.wcs?lng=a

Very easy way that tell you which transportation you take and how much time.

4. Metro map and bus schedules

http://stm.info/English/metro/a-mapmet.htm

http://stm.info/English/bus/a-index.htm

5. Transportation STM- services:

Security service
STM’s security officers
The statement of offence

Emergencies
To report is to help – what to do in case of emergency

Safety and security
Public transit rules
Beware of pickpockets!
Travelling safely with a youth group
Between two stops service (for women who travel alone at night)
Holding metro doors: don’t do it.
Fighting graffiti
Caution!
Info-Crime

Youth
Info-Crime Jeunesse
Urban Legends (myth and fact about the STM’s rules)

General Tips

Come early to the bus stop
Sometimes the bus drivers comes early! yes, that’s what the bus driver of bus 95-Montreal does everyday. He comes 8:50am instead of 8:57am So make sure to be on the bus stop 10 mins early. The funny is that when the bus comes, the driver find nobody to take and when he leaves the queue starts and people look with angry face to the driver of 9:05am as they thought the bus came late

Wave to the driver from the other side of the street
When the bus stop is on the other side of the street, the bus is there but the light is red so you can not cross to take it. What do you do?
Waveee.. yes!!! wave for the driver till he sees you. He most probably will stop and wait for you. “Most probably” because sometimes drivers decide to ignore you just like that… it is not common but it happened to me.