Service disruption on Montreal’s aging metro system raises concerns

Service on STM’s yellow line between Longueuil and downtown Montreal was back to normal after an interruption during Monday morning commute.

STM told CityNews that a problem with a pumping station caused water accumulation in the tunnel between Jean-Drapeau and Berri-UQAM stations, resulting in an outage that lasted over an hour and a half.

“The yellow line has been repowered. Our trains will make a complete trip without passengers. If all goes well, service will resume (by 9 a.m.),” said Renaud Martel-Théoret, spokesperson for STM.

Earlier Monday morning, STM announced the service interruption at 7:38 a.m. and said the service was expected to be restored at 9:40 a.m.

“I just arrived over there, and I’m told by the STM agents that the yellow line is closed, so I was kind of surprised,” said Ilias Chad, a Montreal student.

Yassine Ferid, a Longueuil resident, said, “I have a meeting at 9 a.m., and I’m forced to arrive late because of it.”

Temporary buses were deployed during the outage between the Longueuil-Université-de-Sherbrooke and Papineau stations and between the Jean-Drapeau and Bonaventure stations.

This technical failure on the yellow line has raised concerns about the aging metro and the need for more investments to maintain the existing system. 

“We know we have the second-oldest wagons in the world after Mexico City, and there’s also a lot of issues for tunnels, for that kind of problem that happened this morning,” said Philippe Jacques, the co-general manager and spokesperson for Trajectoire Québec.

Étienne Grandmont, MNA for Québec solidaire, critic for transport and sustainable mobility, said, “We know that the Metro of Montreal needs $10 billion of maintenance for the next five years, so it’s a lot of money.”

Aref Salem, the chairperson of the STM board of directors, says, “We need the Government of Quebec and the Government of Canada to sit at the same table.” Adding, “We know there is close to $25 billion that is waiting on the table, so we need them at least to sit together, have an agreement, and bring us the money to fix what we have to fix at the STM.”

Despite concerns about financing the future of the Montreal metro, certain users seem satisfied with the current system.

“Overall, my experience is actually okay. I’m from Rimouski, so for this place it’s actually okay,” said Yucca Toanen, a UQAM student.

Jo-Ann Lauzon, a Montrealer, said, “I don’t use it often, but when I use it, it’s very good.” 

Steven McElligott, another Montrealer, said, “Well, I think it’s been pretty good. Like, I remember when I was younger, it would stop every week or every second week, and it hasn’t been so bad for me, like, at all.”

There was also another disruption of service, causing delays on the new branch of the REM on Monday morning between the Deux Montagnes and Sainte-Dorothée stations. Jacques suggests that the new REM line extension that opened last November has not operated as expected and believes that changes can be made to improve its service. 

“They need to spend more and more time and more money or staff to work to fix the problem. We need better communication as well, and we need a better backup plan to have more buses that can take charge of those people who are not able to move around when the REM is not working,” said Jacques.