Something new in the metro: the STM, Bell, Rogers, TELUS and Videotron bring mobile connectivity to Montréal metro stations

MONTRÉAL, Nov. 28, 2014 /CNW Telbec/ - The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) and its partners Bell, Rogers, TELUS and Videotron today announced that they have turned on a wireless network along a stretch of the Montréal metro. The green line segment, which runs through the downtown area between the Guy-Concordia and Saint-Laurent stations, is now equipped with leading edge mobile technology, such as 3G, 4G and 4G LTE (Long Term Evolution). Customers of all four wireless providers will be able to browse the Internet, watch videos, listen to streamed music, make and receive calls and so much more, directly from within the metro cars and throughout the tunnels and stations. Montréal becomes one of only a handful of cities in the world where the underground subway is equipped with a 4G LTE mobile network. 

This is just the first of five phases for this project, which will take five to seven years to fully complete, thanks to a $50 million investment equally shared among the telecommunications companies.

The focus, over the next two years, will be to deploy the wireless network in the most-travelled stations along the green and orange lines, between Beaudry and Guy-Concordia on the green line and between Mont-Royal and Namur on the orange line. Berri-UQAM, the most significant station of the Montréal metro, which serves over 125,000 commuters per day, will be live by the end of 2014.

Improved connectivity and productivity for our customers
"The fact that the first stretch is finished is great news because it means that our customers can stay connected while travelling, allowing them to plan their travels by consulting schedules and routes on our website and using mobile tools, receive information from the STM in real time or simply consult their favourite apps while travelling," said STM chair, Philippe Schnobb. "The mobile network in the metro is opening up new possibilities in mobility for our commuters. We are also meeting our objective of offering an enhanced and more enjoyable user experience while continuing to improve the delivery of real-time information to our customers."  

"Bell is pleased to launch our world-class wireless services in the Montréal metro, and proud to share our network expertise as we continue to bring this project to life for metro users," said Martine Turcotte, Vice Chair, Québec, at Bell. "Quebecers enjoy the best wireless networks in the world and STM customers can now tap into the power of those networks from their smartphones even while they travel the metro. Today, the Montréal metro just got better."

"The average Montréaler spends about 30 minutes commuting to work each day – that's at least one hour each day round-trip, said Sylvain Roy, President, Rogers Quebec. Access to a reliable wireless network in the Montréal metro gives them more time to catch up on emails; send a quick note to family and friends; find a new recipe for dinner or take a moment to relax and browse their favourite online content. At Rogers, our goal is to deliver the most advanced wireless network to customers no matter where they are, or where they're headed."

"This morning we are pleased to confirm, with our partners, that the cellular network is up and running in the Montréal metro," said François Gratton, President of TELUS Québec and Atlantic Canada. "We would like to thank our partners for their continued trust in our role as integrator of the network design and implementation. It is a challenging undertaking to be sure, and a worthwhile one. We expect it will not be long before Montréal commuters make this service an integral part of their day. Over the coming months we will invest to extend this network even further throughout the metro, for the first time bringing robust wireless networks to our customer travelling underground."

"Videotron, serving Quebecers for 50 years, is pleased to support the development of mobile telephone service in the metro, for the benefit of all users," said Manon Brouillette, President and CEO of Videotron. "As this project shows, our goal is to make a difference in our customers' lives. Videotron is committed to delivering the best user experience by keeping customers connected when they want, where they want. This joint initiative demonstrates the telecommunications industry's leadership when it comes to innovation and its enthusiastic support for the Montréal, Smart and Digital City strategy."

This agreement was entered through Transgesco, the STM's commercial subsidiary, whose mission is to market the company's assets while ensuring public transit users enjoy a better experience and value-added services. 

The fact sheet is available at: www.stm.info/sites/default/files/affairespubliques/Communiques/Annexes/ap_cellulaire_metro_fiche_ang.pdf

SOURCE: Société de transport de Montréal

Isabelle A. Tremblay, STM, 514-280-4940, [email protected]; Marie-Ève Francoeur, Bell, 514-391-5263, [email protected]; Anne-Marie Cadieux, Rogers, 514-560-1059, [email protected]; Luiza Staniec, TELUS, 514-665-3413, [email protected]; Youann Blouin, Videotron, 514-380-7069, [email protected]