Réseau de transport de Longueuil

[SMS]

On 10/1/2019 at 11:49 AM, SMS said:

The 2020 HEV order is split: we are expecting 25 buses before end of year and 15 buses next year. The electric buses should arrive in March 2020. At a union meeting yesterday, I learned that 40 new buses are expected in the future order. If I have more news I will write it here. I can tell you that we are hiring actively... there is currently a training group of 11 persons and a new training class begins in November. In 2020, the RTL expects to hire 70 new drivers! Also more parking space will be needed at GALO for more buses and both garages (admittedly the majority being GALO) will have service increases.

Press release here confirms that 40 vehicles are expected in the 2020 bus order, in French only as usual: http://www.rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/communiques/2020/le-rtl-met-en-service-25-nouveaux-autobus-hybrides/

On 12/20/2019 at 9:46 AM, SMS said:

Scoop!

Route 15 to become accessible in the coming months. As seen on a destination sign. No date has been advanced yet. It is not official for January 2020 booking.

As of last week, route 15 is officially accessible. Here is the French only press release: http://www.rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/communiques/2020/le-terminus-centre-ville-maintenant-desservi-par-une-ligne-accessible/

[SMS]

SCOOP! Route 161 to offer 7 day service. Like on weekdays, the bus will offer "rush hour" service in the am and the pm on Saturday and Sunday. The route has also been extended to Terminus de Montarville, however all trips serve Stationnement de Mortagne. Route 161 will serve all local stops within Boucherville, but will be limited stop within Longueuil. A stop has also been added at Jacques-Cartier and Jean-Paul-Vincent Blvds due to demand.

[downbeat]

1 hour ago, SMS said:

SCOOP! Route 161 to offer 7 day service. Like on weekdays, the bus will offer "rush hour" service in the am and the pm on Saturday and Sunday. The route has also been extended to Terminus de Montarville, however all trips serve Stationnement de Mortagne. Route 161 will serve all local stops within Boucherville, but will be limited stop within Longueuil. A stop has also been added at Jacques-Cartier and Jean-Paul-Vincent Blvds due to demand.

Would this be the only RTL bus route to operate peak-only on weekends? I honestly can’t think of any other off the top of my head …

[SMS]

53 minutes ago, downbeat said:

Would this be the only RTL bus route to operate peak-only on weekends? I honestly can’t think of any other off the top of my head …

I would say so. Not counting special services like skibus which seems to operate middays on weekends (except this week due to March break).

Years ago, the 177 operated Saturday only for roughly 14 hours a day (let's say 6 am to 8 pm). 

The idea of the gradual introduction is for people to start getting used to new options with the upcoming LHL tunnel work. My source tells me that this is courtesy of funding from Mobilité Montréal.

[SMS]

Here is a taste of what Terminus Temporaire Panama will look like in the near future (date still TBD):

https://www.rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/avis-a-la-clientele/2020/demenagement-du-terminus-panama/

[SMS]

New schedules effective 6 April but not as previously thought. We are going to a summer schedule (no school extras and slightly reduced service). Decision was made Sunday. At GASH division, sign up begins today and exceptionally continues into the weekend. With roughly 80 drivers booking per day, this bus garage can sign all drivers within 4 days. Drivers with pre existing conditions (ex diabetes, respiratory illness), drivers over 70 years of age (yes it exists), and obviously drivers already on leave are not allowed to work. Some drivers have even taken retirement. And worse, relief is not necessarily in sight due to the halt of training. Desperate times call for desperate measures, so the RTL will exceptionally offer overtime to drivers on vacation! It is confirmed that transit is an essential service so this is us doing our part.

Please do not "bus fan." Go out only if absolutely necessary!

[SMS]

Changes happening on a daily basis at RTL!

Since yesterday:

• Samuel de Champlain Bridge reserved lane no longer in function due to virtually no traffic;
• Victoria Bridge no longer has 2 lanes for peak hours. It is always 1 lane per direction all day every day. Therefore route 55 pm has no choice but to get to St-Lambert via the new Champlain Bridge.

Since today:

All articulated buses sidelined. Route 45 exclusively operated by conventional buses.

SCOOP: effective Monday 30 April and for 2 weeks, there will be a special COVID-19 schedule. In order to comply to Premier Legault's stay home order, half the employees (336 drivers) will work at both garages (GALO 185, GASH 151) while half will be on paid leave for the week. Then it is the inverse for the week effective 6 April. The reduced hours resemble service similar to Easter Monday on weekdays; Saturday and Sunday service remain pretty much the same. There is a relatively thin spareboard as well.

For the week effective 13 April and going on as long as needed, we will be operating on a summer schedule. Obviously no school extras and slightly reduced service but not as drastic as you will see for the next 2 weeks.

The news only came out today and I am sorry not to offer more details. It is hoped this will slow down the rate of COVID-19.

[downbeat]

For what it’s worth, here’s RTL’s Easter schedule for 2019:

https://www.rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/CMS/MediaFree/file/Depliant_Paques_2019_Web.pdf

[downbeat]

And here are the schedules effective March 30, en français:

https://www.rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/avis-a-la-clientele/2020/modifications-de-service-des-le-30-mars/

It looks like they've dumped schedule data into simple HTML files — whatever works, given the current emergency situation.

[downbeat]

Further to my previous message, the formatting of the RTL schedules has been improved to a simple table.

[SMS]

That table has since been removed sadly.

It looks to me that we are basically offering Easter Monday type service on weekdays meaning that certain routes during peak hours other than 45 and 90 operate service to TCV. Quick examination of those routes are 5, 42, 44, and 60. These specific routes are selected when the 45 cannot handle loads coming from said routes.

I am only looking at GASH division since I work there.

A COVID-19 board period has been in effect since yesterday and in effect for an undetermined period of time. Instead of half of the drivers being on paid leave per week, the situation changed 24 hours after the memo was issued. There are no layoffs for drivers at RTL. Drivers that have enough seniority can book to be on-call at certain hours of the day. A new driver shuttle (internally numbered 704) does the rounds between GASH, PARC, and MTRO since yesterday. If such a shuttle exists for GALO, I do not know it. I am off Monday Tuesday so I do not have much more news.

[downbeat]

22 minutes ago, SMS said:

That table has since been removed sadly.

It appears individual route schedules are now displaying current information through the search bar, so the removal of the master tables isn’t a huge deal, to me anyway.

22 minutes ago, SMS said:

[…] certain routes during peak hours other than 45 and 90 operate service to TCV. Quick examination of those routes are 5, 42, 44, and 60. These specific routes are selected when the 45 cannot handle loads coming from said routes.

I believe 47 will also go to TCV, according to the available schedules. 

[SMS]

Correct - I apologize for the omission. It deserves to be said that routes 5, 42, 44, 47, and 60 will all stop at Panama, especially in PM rush. Usually this does not happen at rush hour depending on the direction.

I have a little more news on the driver shuttle. Both garages have a shuttle and both are numbered 704. The Garage Longueuil shuttle offers hourly service between galo and mtro (Terminus Longueuil), their only relief point between 8 am and 250 xm. They allow for 20 mins travel time and 10 mins recovery per direction. The Garage St-Hubert shuttle maintains pretty much the same hours (8 am to 245 xm). GASH relief points are mtro and parc (Terminus Panama). The shuttle operates every 90 mins using the following routing: GASH - PARC - MTRO - PARC - GASH. Travel time and recovery times are as follows: GASH - 15 mins - PARC (10 mins) PARC - 15 mins - MTRO (10 mins) MTRO - 15 mins - PARC (10 mins) PARC - 15 mins - GASH (turn and burn). Starting in the mid afternoon, certain layovers are lost and the driver must turn and burn. Shuttle operates 7 days a week.

[SMS]

I would also like to add that an extra is provided for route 61, and there is some exceptional limited service for route 25. The Boucherville industrial park serves some distribution centres that have been deemed essential (I can think of Sobey's and Provigo). Here is the communiqué in French

Quote

mardi 31 mars 2020

Ajustements de service

En plus des modifications apportées à notre service ce 30 mars, nous allons adapter, dans les jours à venir, le service en fonction de l'évolution de la situation et des différents besoins. De plus, nous allons ajouter du service, lorsqu’il sera nécessaire, pour respecter la distanciation sociale.

Nous vous invitons à consulter régulièrement cet avis à la clientèle pour connaître les ajouts de service. 

Ligne 25
La ligne 25 est maintenue aux heures suivantes :

Départs du terminus Longueuil : 5h43; 6h13; 6h43 (arrivée à AFFI); 7h12 (arrivée à AFFI); 13h44; 14h09; 14h44; 15h14 (arrivée à AFFI); 23h04; 24h04.

Départs de Louis-Pasteur et Groupe V.A. : 6h25; 6h55; 14h28; 15h28; 16h36; 23h48; 24h46.
Départs d'AFFI : 7h26; 7h55; 15h56; 16h09.
 
Ligne 61
Pour la ligne 61, un départ se fera du terminus Radisson à 6h21.

 

[SMS]

I need to offer a retraction for the GASH 704 shuttle... evidently a 90 minute round trip was deemed inefficient and drivers were still taking the cushion with the 5/50 to parc and 21 to mtro… so the 704 now has a 3rd routing apart from the GALO shuttle.

Tonight I am driving the 704 from GASH to MTRO. 5 mins recovery at mtro, 20 mins travel time between both points, turn and burn at division (on paper). 1 bus every 45 minutes.

Tomorrow I am driving the 704 from GASH to PARC. 4 mins recovery at each end, 11 mins travel time between both points. 1 bus every 30 minutes.

[SMS]

Extras effective Monday April 6

Quote

Ajustements de service

En plus des modifications apportées à notre service ce 30 mars, nous allons adapter, dans les jours à venir, le service en fonction de l'évolution de la situation et des différents besoins.
De plus, nous allons ajouter du service, lorsqu’il sera nécessaire, pour respecter la distanciation sociale.
 
Nous vous invitons à consulter régulièrement cet avis à la clientèle pour connaître les ajouts de service.  
 
Dès le 6 avril
 
Ligne 8
Des départs ont été ajoutés aux heures suivantes :

Départs du terminus Longueuil : 11h12; 12h12; 13h12; 14h12; 15h12; 15h42; 16h42; 17h12.
Départs des Promenades St-Bruno/ de l’Étang : 12h07; 13h11; 14h11.
 
Ligne 10
Un départ se fera de Belcourt et Boucher à 5h00.
 
Ligne 20
Un départ se fera de Béliveau et Jacques-Cartier à 5h45.
 
Ligne 73
Des départs ont été ajoutés aux heures suivantes :

Départs de Lyon et Jacques-Cartier : 5h17; 6h03; 6h48; 7h33.
Départs du terminus Longueuil : 15h30; 16h20; 17h20.
 
Ligne 83
Un départ se fera de De la Barre et Marie-Victorin à 14h39 et un départ du terminus Longueuil à 14h40.
 
Ligne 88
Trois nouveaux départs se feront au terminus Longueuil à 14h47, 15h47 et 16h47.
 
Ligne 98
Des départs ont été ajoutés aux heures suivantes :
 
Départs du terminus Longueuil : 6h14; 6h48; 7h11; 7h44; 8h14; 9h17.
Départs de Virette Parent : 15h50; 16h45; 17h20; 17h45; 18h15.
 
Ligne 123
Trois nouveaux départs se feront à De l'Église et place de l'Église à 4h57, 5h57 et 6h27.
 
Ligne 170
Des départs ont été ajoutés aux heures suivantes :

Départs de De Lyon et Maréchal : 5h11; 6h02; 7h02; 8h02; 9h07; 15h53; 16h53; 17h53; 18h53
Départs du terminus Papineau : 5h40; 6h41; 7h41; 8h42; 15h30; 16h30; 17h30; 18h30;
Départs de De Lorimier et Ste-Catherine : 15h21.

 

[Transitfan39]

On 4/3/2020 at 9:57 AM, SMS said:

. The Garage St-Hubert shuttle maintains pretty much the same hours (8 am to 245 xm). GASH relief points are mtro and parc (Terminus Panama). The shuttle operates every 90 mins using the following routing: GASH - PARC - MTRO - PARC - GASH. Travel time and recovery times are as follows: GASH - 15 mins - PARC (10 mins) PARC - 15 mins - MTRO (10 mins) MTRO - 15 mins - PARC (10 mins) PARC - 15 mins - GASH (turn and burn). Starting in the mid afternoon, certain layovers are lost and the driver must turn and burn. Shuttle operates 7 days a week.

Is this the reason why I saw a RTL bus parked in a drop off zone that said “Navette Terminus Panama” when I was waiting for the 45 at the station

[SMS]

On 4/13/2020 at 11:49 PM, Transitfan39 said:

Is this the reason why I saw a RTL bus parked in a drop off zone that said “Navette Terminus Panama” when I was waiting for the 45 at the station

Yes. Sorry for the delayed response. That is for drivers only. I prefer to sign up the bus as Garage with PR code for NAVETTE so that customers do not get misled.

In other news, if you see old buses out at night and on weekends, do not be surprised. A directive to this effect was sent out a few weeks ago. The idea is to save the newest buses with ac for when they will be needed in the summer. So this is merely an exercise in balancing out the km.

COVID-19 booking continues for the foreseeable future. When there are changes, I will write an update. With the premier yesterday extending the shutdown by a week in the Greater Montreal Area, all drivers remain on spareboard with weekday service called holiday +. Weekend service remains the same.  

Finally, I would like to state for the record that an unofficial extra numbered 821 currently exists for the benefit of AFFI shift workers. The 821 operates express between the metro and Grande-Allée/JA Bombardier as per my understanding.

[SMS]

On 3/25/2020 at 10:09 PM, SMS said:

Changes happening on a daily basis at RTL!

Since yesterday:

• Samuel de Champlain Bridge reserved lane no longer in function due to virtually no traffic;
• Victoria Bridge no longer has 2 lanes for peak hours. It is always 1 lane per direction all day every day. Therefore route 55 pm has no choice but to get to St-Lambert via the new Champlain Bridge.

As of Tuesday, the Champlain Bridge bus lane is back during both rush hours and for both directions. Seems like increased traffic volumes have justified the change. I know that from driving my car the Victoria Bridge now offers two Montreal bound lanes in am rush but I am hesitant to comment on pm rush since I have seen nothing. In any case, route 55 is not running, nor are the majority of our rush hour routes (exceptions apply).

 

 

[SMS]

Last day of the Auto Parc as we know it: 7 June 2020

8 June, we move to the temporary terminal

https://rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/avis-a-la-clientele/2020/demenagement-du-terminus-panama-le-8-juin-2020/

Thanks to @eclair14 for the heads up

[Doppelkupplung]

Does anyone here know why RTL ordered the AG300s with the middle doors in the 60/40 configuration? I've never understood that. It makes sense upfront on the Novas for visibility, but the VHs have confused me here. 

As far as I can tell, they were the only ones in North America to spec like this. Very few in Europe spec'd like this too. 

[webfil]

Possibly for handi-ramp purposes, judging by the pictograms on these pictures :

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BGY_Van_Hool.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:4517_DeLijn_-_Flickr_-_antoniovera1.jpg

I believe 60-40 front door on Nova came with the new flip-flop ramp setting.

[SMS]

On 5/21/2020 at 3:44 PM, SMS said:

As of Tuesday, the Champlain Bridge bus lane is back during both rush hours and for both directions. Seems like increased traffic volumes have justified the change. I know that from driving my car the Victoria Bridge now offers two Montreal bound lanes in am rush but I am hesitant to comment on pm rush since I have seen nothing. In any case, route 55 is not running, nor are the majority of our rush hour routes (exceptions apply).

SQ and SSL (signature sur le st Laurent) went back on their decision; the reserved lanes will only be functional on an as-needed basis. This came into effect last Monday. Transit is clearly not a priority as long as the shoulder can be used for radar traps.

[SMS]

On 5/5/2020 at 9:34 AM, SMS said:

COVID-19 booking continues for the foreseeable future. When there are changes, I will write an update. With the premier yesterday extending the shutdown by a week in the Greater Montreal Area, all drivers remain on spareboard with weekday service called holiday +. Weekend service remains the same.  

Effective Monday 22 June 2020, summer booking begins at RTL. If you consider that the usual offer of service during the summer is 90% of full levels, we are going down to 68.5%. So in a sense, there will be more service but not much more. The TCV extras to back up the 45 and 90 remain the 5, 42, 44, 47, and 60. A communiqué went out last Friday (as usual in French only) describing the service changes coming up. https://rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/communiques/2020/nouvelle-offre-de-service-au-rtl-des-le-22-juin/

Probably the most salient news in all of this will be the return of service for the fake BRT routes 410 and 417, which means the 76 will see a return to weekday service. Seems like the 10 and 17 were not cutting it anymore on weekdays. It deserves to be said that the 170 has continued to maintain weekday service to Papineau station during the pandemic, which goes to show how appreciated this route is by its loyal customers.

From an operations standpoint, management did not offer us a double booking ie we did not book another set of work "just in case" everything opens up and service ramps up to what would be considered normal. I do not wish to cause concern - the RTL has proven that they can set up a work selection with a few days notice and book all drivers within four days (at least in the case of GASH). So if everyone is to return to work, we should be ready.

We are also waiting for plexiglass shields to be installed protecting drivers, so that we can finally start to collect fares. As you can imagine, this cannot begin until the shields are in place. As such, rear door boarding and alighting still remains in effect.

I will miss this board period, it will have been the best "work" that I have ever done since getting behind the wheel almost 9 years ago. For those interested in our labour pool, we have avoided layoffs thankfully. It is difficult to speculate that, if/when the second wave hits, we will return to the tâche system of keeping senior excess drivers at home on standby. I imagine that management will not allow this to happen again.

Oh and finally, 24 June and 1 July are stat holidays so you can expect Sunday level service.

[downbeat]

This doesn’t sound good …

https://rtl-longueuil.qc.ca/fr-CA/actualites/communiques/2020/optimisation-des-ressources-au-rtl/

Briefly, in translation: RTL will “optimize its resources” due COVID-19 funding shortfalls. Service changes and other spending reductions set for September while minimizing impacts on riders and employees.