How to ride the Montreal-Brossard REM, from how much it costs to when it runs
CBC
It's kind of a big deal: the Réseau express métropolitain, or REM, is finally here.
It's the largest public transit project in Quebec in decades and will eventually connect suburbs in the northwest, west and south to downtown Montreal (there is talk of an eastern branch — but the cost and viability for that section seem to have ground that project to a halt).
The first branch of the REM, connecting Brossard, Que., to Montreal's Gare Centrale station, has started running. It carried journalists and officials into the city on Friday and this weekend, rides are being offered for free.
But on Monday, July 31, passengers will have to purchase a fare to board.
Here is everything you need to know to ride the REM:
The REM's first day of full service is Monday, July 31, 2023, although it is free all weekend long on July 29 and 30.
CDPQ Infra, the agency that built and operates the REM, wanted to get the trains running in the summer when fewer people commute in from the South Shore — the idea being the REM wouldn't be at capacity while any last-minute kinks are ironed out.
The REM will operate 20 hours a day, seven days a week, between 5 a.m. and 1 a.m.
During rush hour, trains will arrive every three minutes, forty-five seconds. They will arrive every seven minutes outside rush hour.
The REM will replace bus lines operated by transit agencies on the South Shore that brought commuters over the Champlain Bridge, depositing them downtown.
Those buses will now bring riders directly to the REM stations, where they will have to transfer onto the trains.
It's a system CDPQ Infra says will be more efficient but which has some South Shore commuters frustrated. They say the REM will actually lengthen their commute and cost them more, especially since some downtown stations — like Griffintown-Bernard-Landry — are not operational yet.
Speaking of cost, a REM ticket will cost different prices depending on where you are taking it from.
If you're going between Montreal stations, taking it from the Nun's Island stop to the Gare Centrale station, for instance, you need only purchase a $3.75 "all modes" ticket for Zone A.