STM announces the launch of Mouvement orange as of August 26

Press release

Upcoming opening of a reserved lane for buses and taxis on Papineau Avenue

Montréal, August 22, 2019 – The Mayor of Montréal and the Chairman of the STM Board of Directors were excited to announce the upcoming opening of a reserved lane for buses and taxis on Papineau Avenue. Announced as part of the unveiling of Mouvement orange this past spring, the reserved lane will improve flow and regularity for the new 445 Express Papineau line serving downtown Montréal and for part of the route of the 45 Papineau. The lane will open on August 26.

“We know what it’s like for Montréalers who choose to take public transit. That’s why we came up with Mouvement orange, which aims to improve service along the Orange line between Beaubien and Berri-UQAM stations, the busiest area of the métro network. This strategy offers fast, efficient bus alternatives with service to the central Island of Montréal, which includes Ville-Marie, Mile-End, Plateau-Mont-Royal and Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie,” stated Montréal Mayor Valérie Plante.

“I applaud the STM’s teams, the boroughs involved and the City of Montréal, who worked tirelessly to commission the new bus line and reserved lane. The fact that all the necessary work was completed in barely a few months is incredible. This first phase of Mouvement orange will be followed by other phases, which will involve implementing various measures in the bus and métro network over the coming years,” added Philippe Schnobb, Chairman of the STM Board of Directors.

Promotional campaign and social media

The STM will also deploy a campaign promoting the new 445 Express Papineau and 480 Express du Parc lines in traditional media, in public spaces and online. The campaign will feature popular destinations for passengers who normally take the métro between Beaubien and Sherbrooke stations and will now be able to get downtown on a single bus without transferring. The destinations will be paired with similar-sounding first names, making for a fun and informative campaign.

The campaign will be visible on the Orange métro line and at bus stops, bus shelters and BIXI stations in the areas targeted by the measures. Beaubien and Rosemont stations will be made up in the Mouvement orange colours and advertisements will be placed in newspapers, on social media, on the Web and on the radio.

To reach a new target audience, an influencer campaign featuring well-known public figures selected for their proximity to the involved neighbourhoods will also be launched. Members of the public will be encouraged to take a photo in one of the bus shelters made up for the occasion and post about their bus trip using the hashtag #monbusmtl.

A reserved lane in a critical corridor for buses

The reserved lane will serve the Papineau corridor between Jean-Talon and Sherbrooke streets. It will be almost eight kilometres in length (both directions) and will be operational Monday to Friday from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. southbound and from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. northbound. The City of Montréal will also begin to gradually replace traffic light controls to enable bus detection at intersections and respond to requests for priority to improve travel times. These measures will benefit at least 15,000 daily trips, almost half of which are made during peak periods by customers on the 45 and 445 lines.

New line on Papineau and improvement of existing bus lines

The 445 Express Papineau bus will offer passengers an attractive alternative to the métro, with a direct route downtown:

During the morning peak period, the 445 will start out on Bellechasse Street at the corner of 20th Avenue. It will go along Beaubien Street and then take Papineau Avenue as far as René-Lévesque Boulevard before travelling through the heart of downtown.

During the afternoon peak period, the 445 will travel along René-Lévesque Boulevard before turning onto De Lorimier Street. It will take Saint-Joseph Boulevard as far as Papineau Avenue and then travel up to Beaubien Street. The route will end on Bellechasse Street at the corner of 20th Avenue.

The STM will also enhance other bus lines with direct service downtown along the eastern branch of the Orange line:

Departures will be added to the 427 Express Saint-Joseph line, particularly during the morning peak period.

Two express lines will be implemented for peak periods. These lines, the 480 Express du Parc and the 465 Express Côte-des-Neiges (formerly known as the 435 Express Du Parc / Côte-des-Neiges) will go downtown in the morning and north in the afternoon to provide service that better meets customers’ needs. Meanwhile, service on local lines 80 Du Parc and 165 Côte-des-Neiges will be enhanced toward downtown in the afternoon and away from downtown in the evening to maintain the existing level of service along the Du Parc and Côte-des-Neiges corridors.

Enhanced service on the Orange line

The STM will also enhance service on the Orange line with the addition of two trains during morning and afternoon peak periods. The additional trains will bring the number of trains leaving from Henri-Bourassa station from seven to nine during the morning peak period. There will also be three trains on standby to mitigate service disruptions.

Official photo

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Isabelle A. Tremblay
Société de transport de Montreal
medias@stm.info

Geneviève Jutras
Press Secretary
Office of the Mayor and the Executive Committee
514-243-1268
genevieve.jutras@ville.montreal.qc.ca