Blue Line (Montreal Metro)

The Blue Line (Ligne bleue), also known as Line 5 (Ligne 5), is one of the four lines of the Montreal Metro in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was the fourth to be built, notwithstanding its alternate official name of "Line 5", as Line 3 was planned but never built. Unlike the other three routes, the east–west Blue Line does not serve the city's main Metro junction at Berri-UQAM.

The line first opened in 1986, with the last addition to the line being an intermediate station in 1988. The line is currently being extended five stations to the east, with completion scheduled for 2030.

History
The Blue Line was first proposed in the early 1970s as an east–west line passing through the centre of the island of Montreal. Construction of Snowdon station began in 1975 as part of the construction of the Orange Line. In 1979, the provincial government confirmed plans to build the Blue Line.

On 16 June 1986, the first section opened, between Saint-Michel and De Castelnau. That was followed by the section from De Castelnau to Parc on 15 June 1987 and Parc to Snowdon on 4 January 1988. The opening of the intermediate station Acadie was delayed for almost three months and occurred on 28 March 1988.

Due to low usage, the line was initially operated from 5:30 am to 7:30 pm on weekdays, and used three-car trains instead of the nine-car trains used on the other Metro lines. Students from the University of Montreal, the main source of Blue Line riders, obtained an extension of the closing time to 11:10 pm and then 12:15 am in 2002. , the line has similar opening hours to other metro lines.

In the 2010s, work began on making the line accessible to all, with the installation of elevators. , three stations on the line are accessible, including both interchange stations at Snowdon and Jean-Talon. In the 2020s, a renovation of Édouard-Montpetit station began to link the station to the new Réseau express métropolitain, which will replace the Deux-Montagnes line with rapid transit.

In January 2023, the Société de transport de Montréal announced that the line would be re-signalled with communications-based train control (CBTC) as part of the work to extend the line eastwards to Anjou. In February 2024, a $217-million contract was awarded to Thales to install CBTC on the line.

Extensions
Initial proposals for the line in the 1970s suggested that the line would run from Ville Saint-Pierre, Lachine, in the west, passing through the centre of the island of Montreal before turning north towards Montréal-Nord.

Eastern extension to Anjou
Following the opening of the line in the 1980s, various governments have proposed extending the line east to Anjou, such as prior to the provincial elections of 1989. Various studies took place to understand the cost and ridership potential of an extension.

The former Agence métropolitaine de transport (AMT, now ARTM) published a study, Vision 2020, in December 2011. The study proposed extending the Blue Line northeast of Saint-Michel to Anjou. There were a total of five planned new stations: Pie-IX, Viau, Lacordaire, Langelier and Anjou. The terminus would be located at the Galeries d'Anjou shopping centre, near the junction of Autoroute 25 and Autoroute 40.

On 20 September 2013, a 7 km extension northeast to St. Leonard and Anjou was announced by the STM and the Quebec government. The provincial government announced that the extension would proceed and committed $38.8 million to set up a project office tasked with preparing detailed financial and technical plans within two years. The start of construction was slated for 2021, with completion in 2025.

After the Parti Québécois lost the 2014 provincial election, the future of the Blue Line extension came into question. The successor Liberal government had expressed interest in extending mass transit to Montréal–Trudeau International Airport and implementing a light rail line on the new Champlain Bridge under construction. On 28 May 2014, it was announced that the project would be reviewed by the new provincial government and that, if the project was again approved, construction would start in 2021, which was confirmed in the STM's new 2025 Plan. The project could cost up to $3 billion based on a February 2016 reassessment.

On 9 April 2018, premier of Quebec Philippe Couillard and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced their commitment to fund and complete the extension, then planned to open in 2026. Around $365 million was provided to STM to allow them to purchase land and undertake design and technical work.

In March 2022, it was announced that the federal government had agreed to provide $1.3 billion to the extension, with further costs to be covered by the provincial government. The 6 km extension was set to include five new stations, two bus terminals, a pedestrian tunnel connecting to the Pie-IX BRT and a new park-and-ride. Overall, the project was estimated to cost around $5.8 to $6.4 billion and scheduled to be completed in 2029.

Initial construction work began in August 2022. Procurement work to build the tunnels and stations began in the fourth quarter of 2022, and major construction will follow after contractors are appointed. In January 2023, the STM announced that five Quebec artists – Jocelyne Alloucherie, Ludovic Boney, Nadia Myre, Alain Paiement and Marc Séguin – had been selected to create public art at each of the new stations. In September 2023, construction tenders for the tunnel boring machine were called and an announcement was made that the opening date would be delayed to 2030.

Proposed western extension
The original intent for the Blue Line was that it would extend southwest from Snowdon to serve Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Hampstead, Montreal West and Ville Saint-Pierre. Snowdon station was constructed with a cross-platform interchange to allow easy access to Orange line trains heading downtown.

Operation hours and frequency
The Blue Line operates between 5:30 a.m. and 12:45 a.m on weekdays and Sunday, and between 5:30 a.m. and 1:15 a.m on Saturday. Trains arrive at stations every 5 to 7 minutes during peak periods, every 5 to 10 minutes during off peak periods, and every 8 to 11 minutes at weekends.

Rolling stock
Since the line's opening, Blue Line trains have been made up of MR-73 cars. Each train consists of two segments of three cars, totalling six cars, shorter than the Green, Orange, and Yellow Line trains, which all comprise three segments of three cars, for a total of nine cars. Some nine-car MR-73 trains were transferred from the Orange to the Blue Line, but these had to be shortened to six-car configurations. The train speed is 72 km/h.

The preceding MR-63 train type spent its final day in revenue service on the Blue Line but otherwise rarely appeared on it.

The line is served by Youville Shops, located between Parc and de Castelnau stations. This is located underground and occupies a small portion underneath Jarry Park. Another service facility is located at the 500 m end tracks following Snowdon station but is rarely used by the STM.