Stm adapted transit montreal region

MONTREAL NEWS ‘One single service’: STM to manage adapted transit for the entire Montreal region To cover the 83 municipalities represented by the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain as of Jan. 1. An MUC paratransit bus tries to negotiate the narrow lanes on Belanger St. in Rosemont in February 2025 file photo. (Pierre Obendrauf / Montreal Gazette) By Jason Magder September 24, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. Last Updated: September 24, 2026 at 12:03 p.m. Once managed by four transit authorities in the Montreal region, the task of arranging adapted transit rides for those with mobility difficulties will be conferred on the Société de transport de Montréal. The transition has already begun. Since the beginning of the year, the STM has been in charge of adapted transit in Montreal and Laval. However, as of Jan. 1, 2027, a new entity will be formed to manage all adapted transit across the 83 municipalities in the region represented by the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain. By the end of 2028, the plan is for the new entity to also provide rides in the regions covered by Exo and the Réseau de transport de Longueuil. Users of adapted transit will all have the same number to call and same software to use online in order to book their rides. Since the STM eliminated adapted transit minibuses on its territory last year, all adapted transit rides in the region is done by taxis with adapted vans, who are contracted by the individual transit agencies. “It means people will have access to one single service with the same norms and the same quality of service,” said Ludwig Desjardins, the executive director of development and performance for the l’ARTM. “For the customers, they will benefit from a better service altogether, and we will be able to do better with the resources that we have. We will even generate with some savings.” ARTM spokesperson Maxime Riopel said the transit authority has identified “a large potential” for savings. Since the harmonization is expected to take place by the end of 2028, he said it was premature at this point to say exactly how much money may be saved through the process. “The work is part of the overall recurring cost savings that the ARTM has promised as part of an agreement on financing with the (provincial) government,” Riopel said. “The gains will be achieved through better co-ordination, a reduction of certain redundancies and a more efficient use of resources.” The service will allow the ARTM to use the same…