Montreal Transit Photos
You may have seen my photo threads from
Montreal and
Quebec. Here are some assorted pictures about their transportation infrastructure, mostly from Montreal.
This picture pretty well sums up what will be the two main subject matters: Montreal's Metro and Bixi bike-sharing system. The building is the entrance to a Metro station, and you can see a Bixi station in the foreground.
The Metro, very French-like with its blue cars:
Montreal's Metro is famous for its rubber tires.
Another couple of station entrances. We don't have these in DC. Entrances are either integrated into large commercial buildings or covered by a
canopy.
The iconic Metro logo.
I arrived into Montreal by Amtrak. This is the inside of the central train station. I never managed to get a look at the outside.
And now, Bixi.
Stations like this one are placed all around town. You unlock a bike using a little computer terminal, which is self-powered by solar cells. Once you've unlocked a bike you get 1/2 hour to ride it free of charge, after which the system charges you. You can generally get anywhere in the coverage area in less than 1/2 hour, so there are rarely fees. You do have to pay for a membership, however. Memberships are either annual (something like $80/year) or daily ($5/day).
A closer look at one of the bikes, locked into its docking station. They are sturdy bikes, built for city riding. Handlebars for upright seating, step-through frame, fenders, skirt guard (transparent, but there), chain guard, built in kinetic-powered lights, front basket... not a racing bike.
Stations are modular and come in all sizes. From small neighborhood locations...
... to major hubs.
Bike-sharing systems like Bixi are common in Europe, but only beginning to come to North America. Washington, DC has a smaller system (with plans to significantly expand), and a few other North American cities are planning them (Minneapolis, Boston, New York, Mexico City, Denver). As a result, Bixi remains something of a curiosity for tourists.
Since some destinations are more popular than others (for example, people like to ride
downhill but not so much
uphill), Bixi needs a staff to keep bikes spread out evenly through the system. All it takes is a truck and someone to move bikes around. Bikes that need maintenance go in the flatbed of the pickup. In DC we have a
guy in a van who does this job, but Montreal's system is bigger.
A close-up of the pay station. You swipe your credit card, then the station prints out a small paper with a three digit code. You use the code to unlock a bike (see next picture).
Here is a bike docking station (sans the bike). You can see the slightly blurred keypad on its left side. Once you tap in the correct code, the bike unlocks.
Bixi is very popular, and extremely heavily used. It is rapidly becoming an icon of the city, in the same manner as the Metro. It is celebrated by a flower hedge at city hall.
Montreal's bike-friendliness goes beyond Bixi, however. Were it in the US, we would almost certainly consider it the best biking city in the country.
It is criss-crossed by an impressive system of cycle tracks...
... Supplemented by things like sharrows.
As a result, lots and lots of people ride...
... And special function bikes are common.
Finally, a quick bonus from Quebec City.
They have ferries.
And adorable little buses, for the tight streets of the old city.
End.
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