More than 60 per cent of STM bus routes face detours

CTV Montreal: Bus detours As many as 63 per cent of bus routes have detours in one of the worst construction seasons yet.

Getting to and from the city – even in and around downtown Montreal -- on an STM bus lately can be a challenge.

The STM confirms that nearly two-thirds of its 220 bus routes--140--are affected by construction.

Construction is worse this year than in years past, mainly due to major projects such as the Turcot Interchange. The STM says that project alone is affecting bus routes in dozens of ways every week depending on the work that's being done on the site.

The STM said it works with the city and Transport Quebec to manage detours as effectively as possible, and aims to make any delays be shorter than ten minutes.

It is also hoping to avoid changing bus stops whenever possible.

“There some phase changes on construction sites, so sometimes we have to adjust. We have an operations team 24 hours a day, seven days a week that is able to handle this situation and of course we have to adjust quickly and it can be an inconvenience for the riders,” said STM spokesperson Alain Labelle.

Renato Carlone, president of the union of bus drivers and metro operators, said the job of getting to bus stops on time is difficult enough for drivers at the best of times. With hundreds of construction sites across the city, it is much harder.

The union wants to remind commuters who might be upset to please avoid taking it out on bus drivers.

For all notices on bus detours and changes, please refer to the STM website.