Laval, QC, SOCIETE DE TRANSPORT DE LAVAL shows how to do transit

• The STL operates over 20 million runs annually.
• The overhaul of the bus network, made necessary by the extension of the metro to Laval, gave rise to a 28% increase in service, faster trips and more direct bus routes.
• The frequency of buses outside rush hours, on evenings and weekends, has doubled on 12 lines since August 2009.
• The fare policy is particularly designed to encourage families to use public transit: All adults paying their fare on weekends and holidays may be accompanied, free of charge, by up to five children age 11 and under. This policy also applies to every day in the summer, July 1 - Labour Day. In addition, the STL's $1 fares on summer smog days are a first in Québec.
• The STL is carrying out a feasibility study for a trolleybus network powered by electrical energy.
• It is financing Éco Mobile à Laval, a major operation by Vélo Québec and aimed at promoting alternate solutions to car use.
• It is also partnering with the Association québécoise de lutte contre la pollution atmosphérique, Communauto and The Carpooling Network to promote sustainable transportation in Laval.
• All vehicles on its fleet use biodiesel B5, a fuel that comes from recycled oil that isn't made of corn.
• At the beginning of 2010, the STL launched STL Synchro, an unprecedented program providing transit user information in real time by means of display units installed at bus stops and inside buses, with the same information available via text messaging and the Internet.
• The STL has its own page on Facebook, where it announces service notices, and it is also on Twitter.
• The STL offers riders the opportunity to register on My STL to receive notices on its bus routes that they usually take.
• Since the roll-out, in 2009, of its vehicle scheduling control system, the STL's on-time performance has been on the rise, up to almost 92%, thereby prompting the envy of transit users of other transit corporations.

CNW Newswire