You can now travel with your bike or dog on the metro for more hours of the day

Bella, Charlie, Perry and Theo accompany their Ensemble Montreal parents in asking the city to allow them onto the metro. SOURCE: Ensemble Montreal

Montreal's transit authority (STM) is extending the hours when dogs and bikes are allowed on the metro.

As of April 15, bikes and dogs are welcome on board Monday to Friday from opening hours to 7 a.m., from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and from 6 p.m. to close.

Bikes and dogs are permitted at all hours on weekends, as usual.

The change is part of a pilot project running until Nov. 15, when the STM will decide whether to keep it up.

When boarding, dog owners are advised to avoid the lead car as this space is usually reserved for school groups and people with disabilities.

Dogs must be muzzled and leashed, and only one pup per person is allowed. The same thing goes for bikes (the one-per-person bit, that is).

MORE CHANGES COMING IN MAY

Restrictions will get even looser this summer: from May 20 to August 20, bikes and dogs will be permitted at all hours.

Exceptions will be made during high-traffic events such as festivals.

"The goal of relaxing the rules governing bicycle transportation in the metro system is to offer greater flexibility to cyclists who wish to combine the two modes of travel," said STM board chairman Éric Alan Caldwell in a press release.