Exo (public transit)

{{Short description|Regional public transport system in Greater Montreal, Quebec}}

{{Infobox public transit

| name = Exo

| image = Exo.svg

| imagesize = 150px

| image2 = {{Multiple image

|perrow = 2

|total_width = 270

|image1 = AMTSBLG.JPG

|alt1 = Photo of a train in a station

|caption1 =

|image2 = Exobus1.jpg

|caption2 =

|alt2 = Photo of a bus

|border = infobox

}}

|caption2 = An outbound train on the Mont-Saint-Hilaire line (left); An Exo commuter bus in Downtown Montreal (right)

| marks = EXO

| host = {{ubl|Canadian National Railway|Canadian Pacific Kansas City|{{lang|fr|i=no|Réseau de transport métropolitain}}}}

| locale = Greater Montreal

| transit_type = {{ubl|Commuter rail|Bus service|Paratransit|On-demand transit}}

| headquarters = 700 rue de la Gauchetière, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

| chief_executive = Sylvain Yelle

| began_operation = {{ubl|1859 (first section)|January 1, 1996 (as AMT)|{{Start date|2017|06|01}} (as {{langr|fr|Réseau de transport métropolitain}}/Exo){{Cite news |url=https://www.lapresse.ca/debats/chroniques/jean-philippe-decarie/201705/14/01-5097938-lobjectif-de-la-mobilite-integree.php |title=L'objectif de la mobilité intégrée |date=2017-05-15 |language=fr |trans-title=The Objective of Integrated Mobility |newspaper=La Presse |access-date=2024-09-03 |last1=Décarie |first1=Jean-Philippe }}}}

| lines = {{ubl|5 (commuter rail)|219 (bus)}}{{cite web |url=https://exo.quebec/Media/Default/pdf/a-propos/medias-publications/publications/EXO_RA2023%20-%20VF_Accessible_revBON.pdf |title=Rapport annuel 2023 |language=fr |trans-title=2023 Annual Report |format=pdf |access-date=2024-08-27 }}

| stations = {{ubl|52 rail stations|11 bus terminuses}}

| vehicles = {{ubl|41 locomotives|206 passenger cars (2024) {{cite web |url=https://exo.quebec/Media/Default/pdf/a-propos/medias-publications/publications/exo-ra2024.pdf |title=Rapport annuel 2024 |language=fr |trans-title=2024 Annual Report |format=pdf |access-date=2025-04-25 }}}}

| annual_ridership = {{ubl|16,613,172 (bus)| 7,051,965 (commuter rail) | 736,451 (paratransit) |90,725 (on demand) }} (2024)

| operator =

| website = {{official URL}}

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Exo, stylized as exo and officially known as the {{lang|fr|i=no|Réseau de transport métropolitain}} ({{IPA|fr|ʁezo də tʁɑ̃spɔʁ metʁɔpɔlitɛ̃}}, RTM; {{langx|en|Metropolitan Transportation Network}}), is a public transport system in Greater Montreal, including the Island of Montreal, Laval (Île Jésus), and communities along both the North Shore of the Mille-Îles River and the South Shore of the St. Lawrence River. It was created on June 1, 2017, taking over Montreal's commuter rail services from the former {{lang|fr|i=no|Agence métropolitaine de transport}} as well as bus and paratransit services from the various suburban municipal and intermunicipal transit agencies.{{Cite web |url=https://exo.quebec/en/about/status-mandate |title= Status, mandates and territory

|publisher=Exo |access-date=2024-10-10}} Exo operates the second busiest such system in Canada after Toronto's GO Transit.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Exo's territory is concurrent with Montreal Metropolitan Community limits, with the addition of the Kahnawake First Nations reserve and the city of Saint-Jérôme.Act respecting the Réseau de transport métropolitain (RLRQ, c. R-25.01, section 3) It serves a population of approximately 4 million people who make more than 174,000 trips daily in the {{convert|4258.97|km2|sqmi|abbr=on}} area radiating from Montreal.{{Cite web |url=https://www.artm.quebec/a-propos-de-l-artm/ |title= À propos

|language=fr |trans-title=About |publisher=Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain |access-date=2024-10-15}}

History

{{See also |Exo commuter rail#History |Exo bus services#History}}

A regional transit agency in Greater Montreal was first created by the Quebec government in 1995 with the {{langr|fr|Agence métropolitain de transport}}, with the mandate of developing, coordinating and promoting transit throughout the area; improve and develop the commuter rail network, and; encourage integration of different modes of transit. On December 20, 1996, the AMT took over responsibility of the commuter trains from the Société de transport de la Communauté urbaine de Montréal (STCUM).{{Cite web |url=https://archipel.uqam.ca/12610/1/D3566.pdf |title=L'Évolution des trains de banlieue montréalais : 170 ans de service (1847 - 2017) |language=fr |trans-title=The Evolution of Montreal Suburban Rail: 170 Years of Service (1847 - 2017) |author=Barrieau, Pierre |publisher=Université de Québec à Montréal }}

On June 1, 2017, the AMT was disbanded in a reorganization of metropolitan transit authorities. A new agency, the {{langr|fr|Réseau de transport métropolitain}} (RTM) was created to be responsible for operating commuter rail and suburban transit services.{{Cite press release |url=https://exo.quebec/fr/a-propos/medias-publications/communiques-presse/nouvelle-gouvernance-dans-les-transports-collectifs |title=Nouvelle gouvernance dans les transports collectifs |language=fr |trans-title=New governance in public transit |publisher=Réseau de transport métropolitain |date=2017-06-01 |access-date=2024-09-05 }}

In May 2018, the RTM adopted the Exo brand (stylized exo, all-lowercase), to represent the sub- and exurban nature of its service area.{{Cite web |url=https://exo.quebec/fr/a-propos/medias-publications/communiques-presse/le-reseau-de-transport-metropolitain-devient-exo | title=Le Réseau de transport métropolitain devient exo |trans-title=The Réseau de transport métropolitain becomes exo |language=fr |date=2018-05-23 |access-date=2024-08-27 |publisher=Exo }}

Partners in transport{{Anchor|CIT}}

Exo's parent agency, the {{langr|fr|Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain}} (ARTM), is charged with transportation planning for the Greater Montreal area.

Exo operates commuter train service as well as the bus service outside of the three main population centres of Greater Montreal. In these areas service is provided by the {{langr|fr|Société de Transport de Montréal}} on the Island of Montreal, the {{langr|fr|Société de Transport de Laval}} in Laval, and the {{langr|fr|Réseau de transport de Longueuil}} for the urban agglomeration of Longueuil.

Commuter rail

Buses

File:Exobus1.jpg.]]

File:Exobus2.jpg, headed for Sainte-Martine.]]

Exo runs multiple bus lines through its subsidiaries serving Montréal suburbs.

Exo operates all commuter bus services for the North Shore and South Shore suburbs, excepting the cities of Longueuil and Laval, which have their own transit agencies.

Fares

{{See also |Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain#Fare structure}}

Exo services operate within the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM)'s integrated fare structure for Greater Montreal, which manages its fare schedule and fare zones.{{Cite web |url=https://exo.quebec/en/fares/fare-reform |title=Fare reform |website=Exo |access-date=2024-12-10}}

In 2022 the ARTM began a multi-year program of updating and simplifying the fare schedule. Through this process, and as the Réseau express métropolitain replaced some train and bus services, certain legacy fares were retained and new transitional fares were created, with the objective of slowly raising prices over time to match the simplified fare structure and then ultimately be phased out — a process called {{lang|fr|lissage}} (smoothing).{{Cite web |url=https://www.artm.quebec/financer/refonte-tarifaire/ |title=Refonte tarifaire |language=fr |trans-title=Fare reform |website=Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain |access-date=2024-12-10}} As of July 2024, Exo commuter rail and certain bus sectors still have these unique fares.{{Cite web|url=https://www.artm.quebec/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/ARTM_Grille_tarifaire_TC_EN.pdf | title=Fare schedule: Public transit. Fares in effect starting July 1, 2024 |publisher = Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain |access-date=2024-12-10}}

Ridership

In 2018, Exo carried 174,710 passengers on a typical weekday — 77,210 on the trains and 97,500 by commuter bus, including adapted transport.

class="wikitable" \|+ Number of Passenger Trips (2024)
colspan="3" style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"\| Rail lines
{{ric\|Exo\|11}} Vaudreuil–Hudson line \|align=right\| 2,730,671 \|
{{ric\|Exo\|12}} Saint-Jérôme line \|align=right\| 2,250,728 \|
{{ric\|Exo\|13}} Mont-Saint-Hilaire line \|align=right\| 866,901 \|
{{ric\|Exo\|14}} Candiac line \|align=right\| 804,488 \|
{{ric\|Exo\|15}} Mascouche line \|align=right\| 399,177 \|
style="text-align:right;"\| Subtotal — Rail lines \|colspan="2" \| 7,051,965
colspan="3" style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"\| Bus routes and on-demand
style="text-align:right;"\| Exo North Shore buses \|align=right\| 9,298,734 \|
style="text-align:right;"\| Exo South Shore buses \|align=right\| 16,613,172 \|
style="text-align:right;"\| Exo Paratransit \|align=right\| 736,451 \|
style="text-align:right;"\| Transit on demand \|align=right\| 90,725 \|
style="text-align:right;"\| Subtotal — Bus system \|colspan="2" \| 17,440,348
Total — Exo System !colspan="2" align=right\| 24,492,313

class="wikitable"

|+ Number of Passenger Trips (2024)

colspan="3" style="background:#eef; text-align:center;"| Rail lines

{{ric|Exo|11}} Vaudreuil–Hudson line

|align=right| 2,730,671

{{ric|Exo|12}} Saint-Jérôme line

|align=right| 2,250,728

{{ric|Exo|13}} Mont-Saint-Hilaire line

|align=right| 866,901

{{ric|Exo|14}} Candiac line

|align=right| 804,488

{{ric|Exo|15}} Mascouche line