747 Montreal-Trudeau/Downtown
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| Founded | 29 March 2010[1] |
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| Service type | Shuttle bus service |
| Stops | 11 |
| Destinations | Bus station-Airport |
| Fleet | Nova Bus LFS |
| Daily ridership | 4,000 [2] |
| Annual ridership | 1.5 million (estimated based on daily ridership |
| Fuel type | diesel fuel |
| Operator | Société de transport de Montréal |
| Website | 747 Aéroport P.-E.-Trudeau / Centre-ville shuttle bus |
The 747 Montreal-Trudeau/Downtown is a shuttle bus service that runs between Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport and Gare d'autocars de Montreal, the downtown bus terminal, which is connected to the Montreal Metro at the Berri-UQAM station. There are nine additional stops in the city: Lionel-Groulx Metro station, Guy at René Lévesque Boulevard; along René Lévesque at Drummond, Peel, Mansfield (Queen Elizabeth Hotel, Central Station and Place Ville Marie), Jeanne-Mance and Saint-Laurent; on Berri at Sainte-Catherine and at de Maisonneuve.
The STM 747 Shuttle Bus replaced the Aerobus that was privately operated by Groupe La Québécoise as a direct connection between the former Montreal central bus station and the airport.[3]
Even though the buses are regularly delayed in the highway traffic, the line is generally considered a big success and reached one million passagers a little over a year after opening.[4]
The route is named after the Boeing 747.
Schedule
The service operates year round, 24 hours a day, the only STM bus route to do so.[1] When service first started buses ran every 30 minutes during off-peak hours and at 20-minute intervals during the afternoon rush hour, but due to increasing demand buses, in 2010 the frequency of services was increased to every 10–12 minutes from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m, every 30 minutes from 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m., and every hour from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m.[5] Subsequently, afternoon and evening service frequencies have improved further. As at autumn 2013, buses now operate every 5-7 minutes on certain busy moments.[6]
Accepted transit fares
Contrary to all the other STM transit services, the 747 Shuttle bus does not accept single tickets and unlimited-evening tickets.
The following STM transit fares are accepted:
- 24-hour pass;
- 3-day pass;
- Unlimited-weekend pass (Friday 6 p.m. - Monday 5 a.m.);
- Weekly pass (Monday - Sunday);
- Monthly CAM;
- Monthly TRAM (zones 1-8);
- 4-monthly CAM.
The first three tickets are available on a non-rechargeable Occasionnelle ticket through the STM vending machines. Longer tickets can only be charged on an OPUS smart card (sold for CA$ 6.00 at ticket counters).
Passengers without ticket are required to pay a $10.00 fee in the bus; exact change in coins only. Passengers paying in cash will still receive a ticket that allows to transfer to any STM service within 24 hours.[7][8]
Vehicles
The route is operated using distinctively branded 2010 (29-149 to 29-156) and 2011 (31-001 to 31-008) Nova Bus LFS vehicles equipped with luggage racks. These buses have a modified livery to indicate they operate the 747 service, with a blue chevron logo with an aircraft pictogram in the centre of the chevron near the rear, replacing the standard STM one.
Since 2011 the 16 dedicated buses have been fitted with free wifi hotspots and buses numbered 31-001 to 31-008 also have air conditioning, the only buses in STM's entire fleet so equipped with such until a new order of hybrid buses in 2016.[4]
Due to the high demand additional conventionally decorated Nova Bus LFS are also used on this route.[citation needed]
See also
- List of STM bus routes
- Société de transport de Montréal (STM), the public transit company of Montreal.
References
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- ↑ 747 Bus Planibus time schedule September 2013.
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