Dozens of passengers from the Réseau express métropolitain (REM) were trapped in the carriages for more than two hours while the train service linking downtown Montreal to Brossard was broken down Monday during rush hour. A computer failure is the cause.
Around 3:45 p.m. on Monday, the REM announced on X the service stop.
According to information sent by email early in the evening to La Presse Canadienne by CDPQ Infra, which operates the REM, “technical problems with the computer system are causing problems and causing errors at the control center”, but “a recovery plan succession (has been) put in place”.
The service had also been stopped earlier in the day for the same problem, confirmed Philippe Batani, vice-president of public affairs at CDPQ Infra, in a telephone interview.
“We are still in a running-in period, but this is a problem that we encountered for the first time today,” he explained.
“At the end of the day, this problem became more important and it forced the complete shutdown of the system so that we could make corrections,” he added, specifying that “small slowdowns” were observed all day.
It was finally around 6:30 p.m. that the trains were finally able to gradually resume their journey.
Lack of communication criticized
Several users, some of whom have been stuck on the train for more than half an hour, deplored the lack of subsequent information, while CDPQ Infra had not published any information since on social networks or on the REM website since the announcement of the service shutdown.
“Let us out.” We’ve been stuck inside for 20 minutes,” one user posted in response to the post.
“We are stuck… in a car crowded with people… between the GC station and IdesS…” said another passenger on the same platform.
Users deplored that the announcement of the breakdown was not relayed in the metro stations, causing several passengers to converge on the Central Station, among other places, rather than taking alternative routes in their travels. .
“It took about 1 hour 15 minutes to travel between Central Station and L’Île-des-Sœurs,” a passenger caught in a train car told The Canadian Press. We just had a message that looped every few minutes saying that the service was down for a specific period of time due to a technical problem. »
Mr. Batani recognizes that the communication issue will need to be improved.
“We take notes. We were told that the way in which information is communicated to users when there are breakdowns must be improved, he indicated. It’s something that’s at the top of our (priority) list. »
When its service is interrupted, the REM provides buses available to passengers.
Planned service interruptions have been announced by CDPQ Infra starting October 15. These interruptions, scheduled from Sunday to Thursday after 10 p.m., are expected to extend over a period of six weeks.
Another breakdown occurred Friday afternoon, still during rush hour.