Fagstein » metro

Lies, damn lies and metro statistics

Fagstein — Fri, 17 Dec 2010 18:30:33 +0000

Line	Green (1)	Orange (2)	Yellow (4)*	Blue (5)
Criminal acts	541	395	429	90
Ridership	87.7M	91.3M	34M	22.2M
Crimes per million	6.17	4.33	12.62	4.05

The Gazette leads today's paper with statistics on crime in the metro system gleaned via an access-to-information request. Montreal police wouldn't break down the crime by individual station - citing security concerns - but would do so by line (kinda). The Gazette concludes that the green line has the most crime, with 541 reported acts, compared to 395 for the orange line, which has more ridership.

It's not surprising that the green line shows more reported crime (even though the numbers in absolute terms are pretty darn small, averaging about 1.5 crimes against a person - including theft - 2 crimes against property - theft burglary, vandalism - and less than one other criminal offence per day across the 64 Montreal police-patrolled stations). The green line not only has the busiest stations, but goes through the downtown core, as well as some of the city's poorer areas, like Pointe St. Charles and Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. But, of course, this is just conjecture until more detailed statistics come out.

*The STM curiously decided to lump the four transfer stations in with the yellow line statistics, even though only one of those four transfer stations actually serves the yellow line. Considering the Longueuil station isn't included in the statistics (because it's in Longueuil police territory) and the traffic through the Jean-Drapeau station is negligible (about 5% of the total traffic for the five stations included in that statistic), you can basically read "yellow" above to mean the four transfer stations.

The statistics show that it's those transfer stations that are the most likely to result in crimes when you divide the total crimes by station. But then, even those statistics lie, because ridership numbers only count passages through turnstiles, they don't count transfers between lines.

So all we can really say here is that statistically, crimes are more likely to happen on the green line than the orange line or the blue line, not counting the transfer stations. Which is hardly going to stop people from taking the green line.

And while we wait to see if The Gazette can get the access to information commission to force the police to release more detailed data, we can just take some comfort in the fact that, on average, a metro station will see a criminal act worth reporting only 22 times a year, or once every 16 days.

Door ajar

Fagstein — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 02:25:58 +0000

You'll probably be seeing mention of this video in the local media in the coming days (hopefully some will actually look into the issue instead of just posting the video with baseless conjecture like I am here). It shows a metro train travelling between the Assomption and Viau stations on the green line with a door stuck open, and is already getting traction on Twitter.

It shouldn't be difficult to see the very serious safety implications of this kind of failure.

Metro trains are designed with a safety system designed to prevent exactly this (which is why it's so rare). When it detects that a door has opened beyond a set limit, it automatically commands the train to stop. This is what causes a train to come to an abrupt halt, usually as it's leaving a station, when someone either accidentally or deliberately attempts to force a door open.

Clearly, unless this video is an elaborate fake of some sort, this system failed on this train. Hopefully it will prompt an investigation that ensures it never happens again.

Since the failure happened on an older MR-63 train, expect some people to link this to the age of the trains and the apparent desperate need to replace them with new ones from Bombardier-Alstom.

UPDATE (Nov. 9): The Gazette's Max Harrold has preliminary details from the STM: It was just that door, it was locked closed when the STM discovered the problem at Berri-UQAM, and it has since been fixed.

The spokesperson also adds "someone should have pulled the emergency brake" - though those handles on board the trains don't actually stop a train in motion, they merely prevent it from leaving the next station.

Just about everyone has picked up the story, with varying amounts of journalism involved:

Radio-Canada posts the YouTube video, and has a phone interview with STM spokesperson Marianne Rouette, who's had a busy day
Agence QMI says the video came to it via Mon Topo on Monday, and it has quotes from Rouette. It also says the train was in the direction of Honoré-Beaugrand, which contradicts the video and what Rouette says.
Métro posts the YouTube video, the basics, and links to Radio-Canada for STM reaction.
CBC Montreal posts the YouTube video and quotes Rouette, including the statement that parts from the door were sent "to the lab" for analysis.
The Gazette posts the YouTube video and quotes Rouette
CTV Montreal posts the YouTube video and interviews Rouette.
Branchez-Vous does its usual form of "journalism", posting the YouTube video and quoting Radio-Canada without linking to it.
Montreal City Weblog points out that in 2004 the doors opened on the wrong side - twice. Not exactly the same issue, but it's another case of doors being open when they shouldn't.
Benoît Dutrizac interviews general manager Carl Desrosiers, who says this was caused by a simultaneous failure of two systems that were completely replaced only three years ago.

There's also commentary already, mostly along the lines of "why did they just film it instead of pulling the emergency brake?" - from bloggers like Cécile Gladel. While I think I would have pulled the emergency brake if I was in that position, I would have also taken photos or video of it.

Consider this:

As much as safety is a consideration, there didn't seem to be any immediate danger because the train wasn't full
Pulling the brake or warning the driver would have caused delays as the problem was discovered and fixed, and most people on the metro are looking to get somewhere quickly
There's a reasonable belief that the STM will take this more seriously now that there's video of it in the news

The Metrodemontreal.com forum also has some discussion of this event and testimonials of similar things happening in the past.

Metrovision gets an update, and another

Fagstein — Sun, 07 Nov 2010 19:09:14 +0000

The new Metrovision layout

Last week, MetroMedia Plus, the people behind the Metrovision screens in high-traffic metro stations - which show news updates and ads on giant screens but also helpfully tell us how long it'll be until the next train arrives - gave it a design update.

The old Metrovision layout

The new Metrovision screens as they first appeared

The screens still show the same information in the same places along the top: the time (though now with the date underneath), the Metrovision logo, the weather and the times of the next departures. But it's the last one that doesn't seem to have been thought through so well. The new digits are noticeably smaller, include a useless leading zero, and have lost a lot of contrast. Instead of being white on dark blue, they became light blue on white.

I noticed the result easily as I transferred trains at Berri-UQAM: While under the previous layout I could see the time to the next train at a glance from 50 feet away, with the new layout it became a blur.

I wasn't the only one to notice. A few complaints were made on Twitter, prompting the company to quickly promise changes.

Within a few days, the layout had changed slightly. The light blue text became black, and the size of the numbers were larger, making them easier to see from a distance.

If only someone had thought to conduct usability testing before the system went into effect...

Didier Lucien mimes things into the Metrovision screen

Mime!

Meanwhile, Metrovision has brought on Ze Mime, Didier Lucien, to act out stuff for advertisers. Since Metrovision doesn't have sound, this kind of makes sense. Maybe even "a dynamic way to advertise," as the release says.

But I don't see how useful a mime will be at talking to us about transit schedules and news. How do you mime "ralentissement de service sur la ligne orange"?

More details on this from La Presse Affaires and InfoPresse.

The metro car contract: a depressing timeline

Fagstein — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 19:05:02 +0000

Just to recap:

May 2006: The Quebec government announces it's going to hand a $1.2-billion contract to build new metro cars to Bombardier without putting it out to tenders. It reasons that Bombardier is the only company that can build the cars in Quebec on rubber wheels. Competitor Alstom immediately points out that it could have done the same.
June 2006: Alstom sues.
January 2008: A judge rules in favour of Alstom, which he says has a right to bid on the contract.
February 2008: The Quebec government starts from scratch, opening up bidding for the contract.
November 2008: Bombardier and Alstom submit a joint bid on the contract. Being the only bidders, they quickly get it.
November 2009: The Quebec government decides to double the scope of the contract from 340 to 765 cars, replacing not just the oldest cars but the entire fleet.
December 2009: Chinese company ZhuZhou comes out of nowhere and demands to be able to bid on the new contract. ZhuZhou promptly sues. A Spanish company, CAF, does the same.
January 2010: A judge rules that because of the expanded scope of the contract, these new companies should be allowed to bid. The STM puts out a call for interest, but competitors argue it's rigged to ensure that Bombardier-Alstom gets the contract. ZhuZhou says it will sue.
March 2010: Both China's ZhuZhou and Spain's CAF express interest in bidding for the expanded metro contract.
May 2010: Bombardier-Alstom sues.
June 2010: A judge rules against Bombardier-Alstom, saying the STM can put out a public call for bids on the expanded metro contract.
July 2010: The STM decides to start from scratch for a third time, opening up bidding for the expanded contract
October 2010: The Quebec government decides it will start from scratch a fourth time, and just hand over a $1.3-billion contract without putting it up for bids. It cites the urgency of acquiring new cars. CAF says it will sue.

(Projected):

January 2012: A judge rules that the "urgency" argument doesn't hold up, and orders a call for bids on the new metro car contract. Bombardier-Alstom sues.
March 2012: The STM puts out a new call for bids, and 12 more companies come out of the blue to express interest.
May 2012: The STM picks Bombardier-Alstom as the winner of the bid. ZhuZhou, CAF and a bunch of other companies promptly sue.
September 2012: A judge rules something, but nobody reads the judgment and everyone just announces they're going to sue each other.
October 2012: The Quebec people sue the government for incompetent mismanagement of their funds.
December 2012: The world comes to an end. All evil dies in the apocalypse. Civil courts stop functioning, and all lawsuits are dismissed.
April 2025: The first new metro cars are delivered. Quebec Premier Patrick Huard participates in a photo op and pretends it was all his doing.

Tout l’monde transpire jusqu’aux orteils

Fagstein — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 21:18:05 +0000

I'm not necessarily in favour of spending millions of taxpayer dollars on massive air conditioning systems for the three or four weeks a year they'll be useful, but I have to admit this Projet Montréal video is damn funny.

(The original, for those who haven't seen it)

You can find the party's dossier on the subject on its website. It includes those pictures of people holding up giant thermometers on the metro.

If only all public policy discussions involved dancers (and am I the only one who thinks it's a missed opportunity that we don't see Richard Bergeron, Luc Ferrandez and Peter McQueen prancing around a fake metro car?)

(via Projet Montréal on Twitter)

Doo-doo-doo immortalized

Fagstein — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 18:40:32 +0000

The STM announced this morning that it is testing a warning sound for metro doors closing that it plans to have installed on all MR-73 trains by 2012. Right now, trains in Montreal's metro don't give any visual or audio indication that their doors are about to close, which sometimes causes people to get caught in them. Other metro systems around the world have such a chime and/or blinking light to indicate that doors are about to close or are closing.

This isn't the first time the STM has come up with this idea. In 2008, it tested a train that had a high-pitched beeping sound. I imagine it wasn't received very well, considering how annoying that beep can be when heard over and over again.

The sound they've come up with this time - you can listen to it in .WAV format (WAV? Really STM?) on the STM's website - is a vocal warning with the famous doo-doo-doo sound of departing trains in the background.

This is significant because the doo-doo-doo sound associated with Montreal's metro system is endangered.

The sound is heard on the MR-73 trains used on the blue and orange lines (a similar sound is heard on three MR-63 trains with middle elements from a specially-designed train). It's not an artificial or intentional creation, but rather a byproduct of a current chopper that regulates power going to the electric motor. This chopper has five stages, which give off sound at different frequencies (three of which are audible by most people).

In new trains that will be built hopefully sometime before the next millennium, the motors will have a much more advanced power regulation system that will result in a continuous frequency change rather than discrete notes. It will sound more like a car engine accelerating than the metro we know now (assuming it makes much sound at all - new trains are supposed to be much quieter).

There has been suggestions among transit fans of artificially emulating the sound by just playing a sound file when the trains start moving, but that seems a bit silly and unnecessary.

Using the three-note sound for a door chime, on the other hand, makes sense. It's a pleasant sound, instantly recognizable, and has a bit of heritage value, I'd argue.

Assuming the STM sticks with this sound for its new trains, we won't have to worry about doo-doo-doo going the way of the dodo.

UPDATE (Aug. 13): I happened to be on the train that's testing this new chime. The doors begin closing at the word "fermons" in "nous fermons les portes," which on the plus side means there's little additional delay caused by adding the warning, but on the minus side means that by the time someone who hasn't heard the notice understands what it says (by the time it gets to the keyword "portes"), it's already obvious that the doors are closing, and the warning becomes unnecessary.

I kind of agree with the commenters below: keep the chime, but lose the voice.

UPDATE (Nov. 12): I was on this train again today, and noticed that they've done exactly as I and others have suggested. The sound remains the same, but the voice announcement has disappeared completely.

Electrical pop quiz

Fagstein — Mon, 17 May 2010 16:00:22 +0000

This diagram with a piece of duct tape on it relates to something you've seen before, but probably won't see again.

What is it?

UPDATE: A few of you got this right. This was taped to the floor in the metro where an old transfer machine used to stand. The machines have recently been removed entirely and the only place you're likely to see them now is the turnstile graveyard.

Farewell, transfer dispenser

Côte-Sainte-Catherine metro station to close this summer

Fagstein — Thu, 06 May 2010 20:20:32 +0000

The STM announced in its Info STM page this morning (PDF) that major work at the Côte-Sainte-Catherine metro station will require it be closed completely between May 17 and August 23. Such closures tend to happen, particularly in stations with only one access, when construction and repair work would make accessing the station impossible.

Such repairs are scheduled during the summer because there's fewer people using the metro and it's not as annoying to walk a few extra blocks in 20-degree weather as it is in minus-20-degree weather.

While the station is closed, a shuttle bus service will be setup, with stops at Plamondon, Côte-Sainte-Catherine and Snowdon stations.

Among other summer projects the STM is planning in the metro:

Work on two accesses to the Côte-Vertu metro station will require the closure of the southern entrance on Côte-Vertu, and later the entrance on Édouard-Laurin. Some buses stopping outside those entrances will be detoured. The main entrance on the north side of Côte-Vertu (next to the main bus terminus) will remain unaffected and the station will remain open.
Work at Assomption station will force people to use an alternate entrance, though again the station will remain open.
Work is scheduled to begin later in the spring at the Du Collège and Place Saint-Henri stations. The nature of that work has not been released yet.

Another workaround to bad elevator design

Fagstein — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 06:32:42 +0000

Modified emergency button at Berri metro elevator

Remember back in September when I predicted that the design of the panel on the metro elevators would cause a problem because the call button and the emergency button were the same size and shape, and placed in such a way that an inattentive passerby might mistake the emergency button for the "up" button?

And then when the elevators actually opened there was a quick redesign that put big arrows toward the call button?

Well turns out the STM has implemented a more permanent solution to the problem of people mistaking the buttons. This transparent plate, which easily swivels out of the way, gives this button a more nuclear-missile-launch vibe to it, and will probably prevent most people from pressing it unless they're absolutely sure they either need help or want to prank the security guards.

The new panel. Press here, NOT HERE!

STM tidbits: Three new routes, two new metro designs

Fagstein — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 19:13:36 +0000

New schedules start March 29

The STM will be introducing three new routes and extending a fourth during its quarterly schedule change (links go to Planibus PDFs):

120 Lachine/LaSalle (Mon-Fri all day): Though not officially an express bus, this is being billed as a faster alternative to the 110 Centrale that connects Lachine with the Angrignon metro station. It has 18 stops compared to the 110's 53 stops. Western terminus is Victoria and 55th Ave., passing through the Lafleur-Newman bus terminal, and then the Angrignon metro. Its eastern terminus is actually the Carrefour Angrignon. Service on the 110 bus is not being reduced.
196 Parc Industriel Lachine (Mon-Fri daytime): An STM bus that connected nowhere with nowhere now goes somewhere: the eastern (northern?) terminus has been extended from Cavendish and Côte-Vertu to the Côte-Vertu metro station. There's also a minor kink about halfway through the route that takes Joseph-Dubreuil St. to 32nd Ave.
427 Express Saint-Joseph (Mon-Fri westbound mornings, eastbound afternoons): An express doubler for the 27 Saint-Joseph during rush hour, this bus keeps going after it reaches the metro, going down St-Denis and Berri and then René-Lévesque to terminate at the Guy-Concordia metro station. This will minimize transfers (taking many workers straight to their offices) as well as take some pressure off one of the most congested sections of the metro system during rush hour: the orange line between Laurier and Berri-UQAM. Only 32 departures each day, but it's highly targetted to rush hour, with a headway of only 10 minutes. Service on the 27 is unaffected. (UPDATE: Seems Plateau mayor Luc Ferrandez has some concerns about this bus)
747 Express Bus (24/7): The airport express bus, discussed in more detail in this post.

Metro cars may have fewer seats

Though it was reported back in January, it seems more certain now that, with all the delays pushing back the new metro car contract, the oldest cars still in service, the MR-63s used on the green line, will need to be kept longer and get an interior redesign to fit more people.

Unfortunately, the only way to fit more people into a confined space like this is to remove seats. The STM was to have put two prototype cars in service yesterday - one removes single seats near the ends of each car, while the other removes single seats near the centre of each car (removing double seats, like was done when the MR-73s were refitted, apparently isn't feasible with these cars because of all the equipment underneath the double seats).

Obviously, not everyone is happy about the idea of squishing even more people into these cars and taking away the cherished single don't-have-to-touch-anyone seats. Discussions are already under way at MetrodeMontreal.com and the Canadian Public Transit Discussion Board about it.

All-articulated bus routes in June

The Gazette's Andy Riga has gotten Marvin Rotrand to tell him that three lines - 121 Sauvé-Côte-Vertu, 467 Express Saint-Michel and 535 R-Bus Du Parc/Côte des Neiges - will be served only by articulated buses as of June. Articulated buses will also be used on the 80 (Du Parc), 139 (Pie-IX), 165 (Côte-des-Neiges) and 67 (Saint-Michel) within a year, with studies about whether to expand them to the 18 (Beaubien), 24 (Sherbrooke - downtown), 105 (Sherbrooke - NDG), and 197 (Rosemont). Aside from having high ridership, the routes also need longer stop zones to accommodate the longer buses.

New daycamp fare

Buried in Riga's piece is mention of a new type of fare the STM will be introducing on June 1. A daycamp fare will cost $12 and cover a trip for adult and 10 children under 13. (Children 5 and under already ride free with a fare-paying adult). This is similar to the family pass they brought in in 2008, which allows kids to ride free with their parents, but only on weekends and holidays.

This new fare will be welcome news for all those who take large groups of children on public transit, but will probably suck for a lot of people if this means more armies of prepubescent kids board STM buses around the island.

Service disruptions reported on Twitter - twice

In case you missed it, the STM is now finally reporting on the status of the metro system using Twitter and Facebook, as well as on their homepage. So far it has reported only one disruption - the green line going down on Sunday.

Annoyingly, the reports on Twitter and Facebook are all done twice - once in English and once in French. Nevermind that the STM hasn't been the most English-friendly organization on the planet in the past, but why not just setup two accounts if you're going to do that?

TRAM 3 at Longueuil: Right decision for the wrong reason

Fagstein — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 03:48:04 +0000

This morning, apparently, the Montreal Metropolitan Community (which coordinates issues affecting Montreal and its suburbs) decided that, beginning in July, the Longueuil metro station would be subjected to the same fare rules as those in Laval: Montreal passes would not be accepted, and users would instead need a TRAM 3 multi-zone pass to enter the station.

The news came out not through the STM or the MMC, but via Longueuil mayor Caroline St-Hilaire, who sent out a press release expressing her outrage:

"Je ne peux pas et je ne vais pas cautionner ça!", a déclaré Caroline St-Hilaire, en indiquant que toutes les dispositions nécessaires seront prises pour que l'entente signée et valide jusqu'en décembre 2011 soit respectée.

This led to stories at Radio-Canada, Cyberpresse and Rue Frontenac, which follow the narrative St-Hilaire has created. Metro goes a bit further, adding that about a quarter of people who use the Longueuil metro use the $70 CAM instead of the $111 TRAM 3. (UPDATE: The STM's Odile Paradis says it's more like 15% of users, or 3,000 to 4,000 people.) The TRAM 3 gives access to the Réseau de transport de Longueuil bus network and the Agence métropolitaine de transport's commuter trains in Longueuil.

Why this change? Well, it makes sense, especially considering what's going on in Laval. The AMT has established zones for transit that crosses into multiple territories, and Longueuil is clearly in Zone 3. The fact that it accepts CAMs just like the rest of the STM network is more historical than anything. That's just the way it's been.

Even St-Hilaire accepted, it seems, that this would eventually change after 2011. But she's mad that Montreal and the STM appear to have gone back on their word and is doing this ahead of schedule.

(The Parti Québécois, meanwhile, jumps on an opportunity to pander to suburban voters and demands that government step in to not only reverse the decision but to reduce the fares for Laval users as well.)

This is happening, St-Hilaire says, because of Laval mayor Gilles Vaillancourt, who is refusing to pay for Laval's share of the taxpayer cost of the metro because he feels his city is being discriminated against. So he decided to take the transit system hostage until Montreal acquiesced to his demand that Longueuil be treated the same as the Laval stations.

Ironically, while this decision would theoretically mean that Laval will start paying its share, the release also says that Longueuil will refuse to pay its share for the metro until further notice.

Vaillancourt, meanwhile, says his city will now start paying its share of the STM's metro deficit, but it won't pay retroactively for the years that Laval paid more and Longueuil paid less.

This is absolutely ridiculous. These mayors are all acting like children, and apparently no adult is either able or willing to step in. Instead of suing Laval so the city lives up to its contract, or having the provincial government step in and order them to respect their agreement, everyone is acting as if Vaillancourt has a legitimate bargaining chip in his hand and is bending over.

Can I start refusing to hand over tax money until I get free pizza delivered to my apartment?

Still a good idea

If St-Hilaire is right and there is an agreement until 2011, then the decision should be overturned and postponed until then. But requiring a TRAM 3 pass at Longueuil just makes sense.

The people who will be affected by the change are people who don't use the RTL bus network, either because they live near the metro station (a tiny minority) or because they drive to it in their cars. We're talking about 3-4,000 people, including those who park in the 2,370 parking spaces outside the Longueuil metro. And to park there, they have to pay about $100 a month in parking fees. In other words, if they're taking the bus from home and using a TRAM 3, they will pay significantly less ($111) than they did parking at the Longueuil metro and using a CAM to get into the station ($170). Less convenient, but cheaper.

Perhaps there's a group of people I haven't considered who would be driven into bankruptcy by this decision, but I can't imagine they will be a large number.

Of course, St-Hilaire loses nothing by taking the stand she takes. Longueuil people like to use their cars, and they like not having to pay for things if they can get away with it. Just like everyone else.

It's time for Longueuil to realize that it is a suburb, and transit is more expensive there because of that. And it's time for politicians in all three cities to realize that holding your breath and screaming "NO NO NO!" is not a valid negotiation tactic.

At least, I desperately hope it's not.

UPDATE (Feb. 5): Nathalie Collard of La Presse agrees that this is silly, as does Projet Montréal, which suggests reducing the number of trains going to Laval and Longueuil.

La Presse also has a vox pop on the subject, and you can imagine what the opinion of the populace is.

UPDATE (Feb. 10): A Facebook group has started up.

A photo pop quiz to get the gears moving

Fagstein — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:00:01 +0000

No geography trivia quiz this week (still looking for ideas in case anyone has any). Instead, a different kind of challenge:

What are these?

UPDATE: After a dozen interesting guesses, Pascal gets it right: They're metro turnstiles.

A sea of old turnstiles behind a gate at Pie-IX metro

Turnstile innards, with unrelated celebratory horn

These photos were taken at the Pie-IX metro station, where dozens of the old turnstiles have gone to die. They have been replaced by new Opus-enabled turnstiles, except for the one at each station that was kept for transition purposes (those will be joining them soon) and some exit-only turnstiles that don't need to be replaced.

Recycling bottles in the metro

Fagstein — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 06:07:53 +0000

Yellow "contenants" bin accepts plastic bottles for recycling

I noticed as I passed by the Mont-Royal metro today that a new bin has been installed next to the paper recycling. A yellow bin marked "contenants" is the STM's first which accepts plastic and glass bottles, milk/juice cartons and aluminum cans.

Though the main issue in the metro for the past decade has been the free Metro newspaper, it's always been a bit silly that non-paper recyclable materials couldn't be collected in the metro system.

Hopefully installation of these bins throughout the network will come fast, and the amount of unrecyclable garbage that goes out will get greatly reduced.

UPDATE (Oct. 27): The STM has begun a three-month pilot project with such bins in "islands" (together with trash and paper recycling bins) at Mont-Royal, Champ de Mars and Snowdon. Once the project is finished in mid-January, the bins will be expanded throughout the network.

Dooo dooo gooooo!

Fagstein — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 21:48:56 +0000

Spotted at Cremazie metro on Oct. 3

I have seen a lot of strange things happen in the metro system before, but I don't think I've ever seen anyone decorate a cake.

El-e-va-tion!

Fagstein — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 07:54:05 +0000

Inside a new elevator at Lionel-Groulx

In case you haven't heard, the STM opened elevators in two metro stations on Monday.

They made a big splash of it (two press releases), bringing out adapted-transit-user-representing board member Marie Turcotte to demonstrate them for the cameras.

Media coverage was light: CTV, CBC, Metro. The Gazette had a photo after the fact, but a Bluffer's Guide that morning (written by yours truly) explaining a bit of background, like the fact that only the orange line is accessible, and this little matter with the trains themselves:

The suspension system on the train cars doesn't keep them perfectly level with the platforms. Depending on how many people they are carrying, the floor level could be up to five centimetres above or below the platform level, making it difficult for wheelchairs (especially electric ones) to cross the gap. Right now, they're having people accompany wheelchair users with special ramps that cross the gap (riders can refuse this help if they feel they don't need it). The next generation of métro cars, which are still years away, will solve this problem.

I took the elevators at Lionel-Groulx a couple of times for fun. Ran into an old lady who got confused and took the wrong one. Use of the elevators was very light, which is either a testament to how well designed the station is or how little people know about the elevators so far. (They're not reserved strictly for those with low mobility.)

One thing I only noticed when I travelled there today was that the Lionel-Groulx station now has an automatic butterfly door:

Automatic door at Lionel-Groulx

For those who don't know, the butterfly swing doors are installed at entrances to metro stations because they can be opened despite a difference in pressure on either side, which happens often when you have trains coming into and leaving the station pushing all that air around. But this is the first time I've seen one that's attached to a motor.

Quick redesign

Oh, and remember that point I made about the design of the panels next to the elevators potentially leading people to confuse the emergency button for a call button? Well, it looks like there was a quick redesign of that panel:

Panels at Berri-UQAM (left) and Lionel-Groulx (right)

It's possible this was part of the plan all along and these decals just didn't get installed until after the elevators opened, but to me that seems unlikely.

Two metro elevators open on Monday

Fagstein — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 07:36:27 +0000

An elevator at Berri-UQAM sits just above a recently reopened escalator.

The STM has asked the media to assemble at the Lionel-Groulx metro station on Monday morning to mark the inauguration of elevators there and at Berri-UQAM.

The elevators, whose construction began more than a year ago, are the first to be put in service on the island, and will join the three stations in Laval as the only ones so equipped. Elevators at Bonaventure, Côte Vertu and Henri-Bourassa are also under construction.

Elevator at Lionel-Groulx, ready for service

One thing that should be noted is that the elevators are for service on the orange line only. The elevators at Berri go only between the mezzanine (turnstile) level and the orange line platforms. They don't descend to the green or yellow lines. The Lionel-Groulx elevators service both lines (the platforms are shared), meaning it's the only green-line station with elevator access.

Wrong button

In my observance of these new elevators, I noticed something about their operation that I'm willing to bet will cause early headaches for metro employees:

Elevator button panel

This is the button panel next to the doors at one of the elevators at Lionel-Groulx. The panel is the same at all elevator entrances. At first glance, you might think it follows the standard layout: the top button to go up, the bottom button to go down.

Except when you look closely, you notice that the top button is actually an emergency call button. Only the bottom button calls the elevator (all the elevators installed so far have only two stops, and hence only need one button).

How many people do you want to bet will accidentally push the top button, causing all sorts of regular annoyance on the part of whatever metro employee has to respond to it, before some workaround or additional signage is put in place?

The new Charlevoix

Fagstein — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 03:57:13 +0000

The STM reopened the Charlevoix metro station Monday morning, right on schedule. (They were very proud of that.) The station has been closed for the summer as its only entrance was renovated and other minor work was done inside.

Before

After

New windows were installed as part of the renovation

What used to be a dépanneur on the left currently lies empty

Little changes inside

The mezzanine hasn't changed much from the pre-construction days, except for some scaffolding left behind

"Stained" glass windows inside - minus a missing pane

Work on the two coloured glass displays isn't scheduled to be complete until January 2010.

A frustrated, mobility-limited transit user walks down the metro's longest escalator

Transit users who ventured into the station for the first time in months would have probably been disappointed that one set of escalators wasn't working - two of the three were stopped, making people walk down the longest escalator in the metro system.

People hoping time would be spent clearing graffiti inside will be disappointed

As will be people who think shoddy repair jobs would be fixed properly

Le métro, l’autobus, c’est très bon, génial!

Fagstein — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 05:34:09 +0000

I'm not familiar with this metro stop.

Metro service extended for Stevie

Fagstein — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 05:15:39 +0000

The Montreal Jazz Fest kicks off Tuesday night with a giant free concert featuring Stevie Wonder at the new plaza across from Place des Arts. The concert, which starts at 9:30 p.m. with opening acts, is expected to run pretty late into the night, and the STM has decided to extend service on the green, orange and yellow metro lines by a half hour to accomodate traffic (in addition to adding more trains during the evening).

Final departures on the orange and green lines will be 1:05am instead of 12:35am, and final departures on the yellow line will be at 1:20am instead of 12:50am.

For those who haven't taken the last metro before, the last trains of the orange and green lines wait for each other at Berri-UQAM and Lionel-Groulx to make sure people transferring don't get stranded. The trains are scheduled so the last ones depart in all four directions from Berri-UQAM at 1:30am.

For those of you going to the concert, you'll want to be on the platform at Place des Arts at 1:15am if you're heading east, 1:25am if you're heading west. If you're taking the yellow line, try being there no later than 1am.

The STM also announced Monday a bunch of other stuff they're doing with summer festivals, although most of it is in the form of cross-promotional discounts or free shuttles.

About those escalator pictograms

Fagstein — Thu, 21 May 2009 01:44:29 +0000

The Laval police department is stubbornly standing by its officers who arrested and ticketed a woman for not holding an escalator handrail and having the gall to protest when they demanded she do so. This action caused outrage that is still giving Patrick Lagacé column ideas.

The argument for the police isn't logically wrong. The STM's bylaws require people to obey pictograms and there is a pictogram telling people to hold handrails. The fine issued wasn't excessive legally.

But there's a reason why courts are run by human judges: laws must be interpreted through the filter of common sense.

For example, if we posit that escalator pictograms must be always followed to the letter, what to make of this:

Pictograms on the moving carpet at Beaudry metro

So strollers have to be held in front of you.

But strollers are prohibited.

Perhaps this is why the STM doesn't ticket people routinely for ignoring these warnings. Even they don't take them seriously.

Fagstein » metro

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