Agence métropolitaine de transport (AMT)

The Agence métropolitaine de transport (AMT) and its partners propose to demonstrate the potential of self-service electric cars and bicycles to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation in the Montreal area.

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Background

Metropolitan Montreal is a large and diverse community of 3.4 million people, and Saint-Jérôme is a constituent municipality of 60,000 people in the north of the region.

The area is served by the Agence métropolitaine de transport (AMT), which operates commuter rail services; plans bus transit corridors, park-and-ride lots and stations; and integrates the fares and services of local transit operators in the Montreal region. In this role, the AMT is interested in promoting all alternatives to conventional car travel.

Montreal is also home to Communauto, a car sharing firm with over 4,500 regular users who enjoy flexible access to a car without the capital cost or responsibility of full-time car ownership. Car sharing can be considered an extension of public transit service. The AMT proposes to expand the concept of car sharing to include electric vehicles, public transit promotion, and the demonstration of advanced technologies.

The extension of showcase operations to Saint-Jérôme would help test the feasibility of car sharing and electric vehicle use in smaller communities.

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Self-service electric cars and bicycles

This showcase would improve alternatives to car ownership for a target audience of current transit users and Communauto members, but especially students, young professionals, business people and tourists.

The showcase would make electric vehicles available to registered users in two general areas:

• In Montreal — almost 100 electric vehicles in 20 locations, and 50 electric bicycles in two locations
• In Saint-Jérôme — two or three electric vehicles and 10 low-speed vehicles with a top speed of 40 km/h

People interested in using the electric vehicles would register as Communauto members (or, in the case of transit pass holders, simply pay an additional monthly fee) then reserve a vehicle each time they need one. Vehicle users would pay a fee based on the duration and distance travelled during each trip. Registered electric bicycle users would pay an annual fee, but no additional fee per use. For added flexibility, registered electric vehicle users would also have access to Communauto’s fleet of fuel-efficient gasoline vehicles, and vice versa.

Vehicle parking stations would offer vehicle recharging facilities, surveillance systems, and information terminals for participants. The electric vehicles would offer sophisticated electronics including navigation systems, contactless smart cards for vehicle access, GPS locators to enable remote location monitoring, and possibly biometric recognition (fingerprint and retinal scanning) for access security.

A 24-hour control centre would monitor the location of electric vehicles at all times, and offer in-car information and assistance to users. Communauto would manage the registration, booking and billing procedures.

The showcase would be supported by public information and communications efforts including a strong visual identity, special events and media relations.

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Expected benefits

This showcase would result in an estimated reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of 500 tonnes annually. Other benefits would include reduced emissions of other air pollutants, and increased transit usage.

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Impact assessment

The impacts of the showcase would be measured through four sets of indicators:

• Reduced emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants
• Electric vehicle efficiency in terms of distances travelled, energy consumed and operating costs
• Behaviour and perceptions of users related to their demographic status, attitudes and changes in overall travel patterns
• Project profitability, accounting for social costs including air pollution, public safety and personal spending patterns

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Partners

Contributing partners and proposed partners in this showcase would include:

• Agence métropolitaine de transport
• City of Saint-Jérôme
• City of Montreal
• Hydro-Québec
• Centre for Electric Vehicle Experimentation in Quebec
• Centre de géomatique du Québec inc.
• Communauto
• Downtown Montreal Transportation Management Centre
• Centre for Sustainable Transportation
• Environment Canada
• Ministère des transports du Québec
• Natural Resources Canada

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Cost

The proposed showcase cost of $8.7 million is divided as follows:

• Vehicles — $4.2 million
• Stations — $2.4 million
• Personnel, communications, studies — $2.2 million

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More information

Mónica Gandulfo, Project Manager
Planning and Development
500, Place d’Armes, 25th floor
Montréal, Québec, H2Y 2W2, Canada
Telephone: (514) 287-2464 ext. 4478
Fax: (514) 287-2460
E-mail: mgandulfo@amt.qc.ca

Note: This information reflects the proposal as submitted by the applicant, and does not reflect the views of Transport Canada.

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Further Links

To obtain the detailed proposal and/or showcase map or maps, please contact us at:

Urban Transportation Showcase Program
Office of Environmental Affairs
Transport Canada
Place de Ville, Tour C, 18th Floor
330 Sparks Street
Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N5

Telephone: 613-991-5867
Fax: 613-993-8674
Email: utsp_pdtu@tc.gc.ca