Highs and lows in metro use
Some metro stations win and some lose in the latest data from the STM. It’s not surprising to find that more passengers pass through Édouard‑Montpetit since the REM station opened below, or that De la Savane – typically one of the least travelled stations for years – is busier since the opening of Royalmount with its footbridge over Decarie offering metro access.
Usage of some downtown stations has fallen slightly, this piece suggesting avoidance of the homeless who frequent them.
DeWolf 14:00 on 2026-05-09 Permalink
If we had tap-in and tap-out we’d have even more precise data that shows both origin and destination (something the TTC benefits from in Toronto), which would help with transit planning. Unfortunately, scanning your card twice seems like a step too far for most people here.
Nicholas 16:10 on 2026-05-09 Permalink
DeWolf, lots of countries don’t have that and yet still get pretty good data. Germany mostly has no taps at all, and they do surveys, just like we do. Also in the vast majority of cases people do return trips, so you can mostly fill that data in, and then also augment it with the surveys.
Germans don’t like being tracked, while the Dutch and English have no problem at all. No gates are more efficient, but you need more controllers, and some people really don’t want that. It’s a tradeoff.