The wait for a bus in Montreal just got longer – Montreal | 24CA News

Bus riders in Montreal can now not depend on getting a bus each 10 minutes.

Starting Monday, the transit authority is scrapping its “10 minute max” service assure on the remaining eight strains that also provided it this yr: 18 Beaubien, 24 Sherbrooke, 33 Langelier, 64 Grenet, 103 Monkland, 106 Newman, 141 Jean-Talon east and 406 Express Newman.

Those strains now have a frequency of as soon as each 12 minutes.

The STM says the choice was made on account of a deficit triggered largely by the lower in ridership because of the COVID pandemic.

“Since the pandemic, changes in customer habits have impacted the demand and ridership from one bus line to another. Consequently, the service was adjusted on each of the network’s bus lines to ensure that the service offered is in line with the new customer habits,” mentioned Justine Lord-Dufour, a spokesperson for the STM.

Before the pandemic hit, the transit authority provided the “10 minute max” service on 31 strains.

Ridership ranges had been on a gradual improve since 2017 — however in 2020, as lockdowns had been put in place and extra folks labored from dwelling, bus ridership plummeted.

“With new travel habits, the addition of preferential measures (i.e. reserved lanes) or the arrival of major public transit projects such as the SRB Pie-IX, the REM or the extension of the blue line, we are completing an internal exercise to review all of our service families (such as 10 minutes max service) and we have undertaken a redesign of the bus network in the recent years to make it even more attractive and better adapted to changes on the Island of Montréal,” Lord-Dufour defined.

Bus riders although are dissatisfied providers are being lower.

“It’s crazy,” mentioned Andrew Harris. He says he typically has to name his boss to inform him he’ll be late on account of unreliable bus service. “Now I have to come out earlier because the ten minutes don’t work anymore.”

Public transit advocate Samuel Pagé-Plouffe says service cuts are dangerous news.

“We’re entering some sort of vicious cycle because when you reduce the amount of services, you reduce the ridership and then it has an impact on the revenues,” Pagé-Plouffe mentioned. “Last year the government of Quebec made a very clear commitment that they would not reduce the amount of public transit services and I think we should keep this as a consensus.”

Both the provincial and federal governments stepped in to assist through the pandemic with short-term investments to maintain the transit authority afloat whereas ridership decreased.

“They should step in with a clear commitment for say, the next five years, so we have a clear vision of where we’re going,” Pagé-Plouffe.

Pagé-Plouffe says a well-funded public transit is an efficient social, financial and environmental funding because it reduces the variety of automobiles on the highway.

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Service cuts to Montreal public transit on the horizon

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