Thirty métro stations now universally accessible

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) commissioned two new elevators at Atwater station today, officially making it the 30^th accessible station in the métro network.

The $7 million project involved:

• Building the two elevators
• Installing all the necessary operating equipment
• Changing the station’s layout and relocating a business
• Adjusting the turnstiles to accommodate the new layout
• Installing the elevators

Most of the universal accessibility work at Atwater station was completed between 2019 and 2021, during the replacement of the station’s waterproofing membrane. Since that work required excavation anyway, the STM took the opportunity to dig the elevator shafts at the same time, making the project more efficient and cost-effective.

“Improving our infrastructure, especially by adding elevators, greatly enhances the customer experience of people with functional limitations. That’s why we focus on upgrading our existing equipment, for an even more accessible métro network.”

Éric Alan Caldwell

Chair of the STM Board of Directors

This project was made possible thanks to the additional funding announced by the federal and provincial governments in 2016 to speed up accessibility work.

Accessibility work in the métro 

The STM is currently installing elevators in two other stations: Berri-UQAM (Yellow line) and Édouard-Montpetit.

Unfortunately, no new universal accessibility projects are planned in the near future due to a lack of funding. The government’s most recent budget did not include any new funding for STM asset maintenance or accessibility upgrades—for the third year in a row. Even more troubling, the amount allocated for asset maintenance will be reduced by $258 million over the next three years.

“This is a worrying situation that puts the reliability and safety of our network at risk,” says Éric Alan Caldwell. “It’s especially concerning given that the government’s annual infrastructure management plan shows a sharp rise—from 23% to 39%—in the proportion of STM assets in poor condition, including tunnels, stations, and MR-73 trains. Without dedicated funding for asset maintenance and universal accessibility, the STM simply can’t move forward with the projects needed to maintain our infrastructure or build elevators.”

2030 Universal Accessibility Plan

Although the number of accessible stations in the network has quadrupled since 2016, the STM is unlikely to meet its goal of making 41 stations accessible by 2030, as outlined in its 2030 Universal Accessibility Plan. Given the lack of funding, this is no longer realistic.

The plan is built around four key strategies and nine areas for action that reflect an inclusive vision of accessibility.

It outlines several actions to be taken by 2030, including:

• Making our infrastructure and vehicles more universally accessible—for example, equipping the entire bus fleet with front ramps and increasing the number of buses with two areas for wheelchair users.
• Moving forward with initiatives to improve the reliability and availability of accessibility equipment, such as front ramps on buses and escalators and elevators in métro stations.
• Raising awareness among employees and giving them the tools and training they need to make our networks fully accessible to customers with functional limitations.