Is Montreal’s new train really that great?

Added: 2026-05-25

[00:00:04]What would it look like if a city had a subway system, then got a whole second subway system? Well, just ask Montreal.

[00:00:11]In 2023, this city celebrated the opening of the first section of the new REM system. REM, short for Rezo Express Metropolitan or Metropolitan Express Network, is a fully automated light metro system connecting the city center with the suburbs. Now that the system has been running for a little bit, it's time to finally give it the official Trains Are Awesome review, which is why we've arrived at Sunnybrook Station on the Demonia branch of the Rim, also known as the A4 branch. Outside, we notice a pretty large parking lot. Sunny Brook is served by several bus connections as well. Conveniently, a screen out here already lists all the upcoming departures. That should really be a standard feature worldwide in my opinion. The overall vibe of the station is modern but pleasant. Some seating outside is a nice touch, but let's walk inside and buy a ticket from one of the machines. Though REM is different from the Montreal Metro and also different from the Exocomuter Rail, it is governed by the same authority as those systems, the ARTM. And so the fairs are integrated.

[00:01:19]The greater Montreal area uses fair zones. Since we are headed downtown, just an all modes zone A ticket will do.

[00:01:30]>> Look at that.

[00:01:36]>> Oh yeah, I've got Bear with me today.

[00:01:38]It's been a while since we've done a video together. Don't worry, more to come. Bear and I were in Montreal to see a concert, a Dutch artist known as Yos Clen. It was a great show, though kind of bizarre to be in a room surrounded by not Dutch people singing along with Dutch songs. My one request to my brother before the show was that we try out the REM. Anyway, now we're up on the elevated platform. It is a weekday afternoon and trains are running about every 7 minutes. Notice one of the great features of this station. The platforms are completely enclosed. From the moment you enter the station concourse until the moment you leave your destination station, you will never be outside.

[00:02:33]So, we're here on a nice spring day, so it doesn't really matter, but I can imagine that on a cold winter day, having an enclosed station like this is very nice.

[00:02:43]Is that an orange?

[00:02:45]>> Yeah.

[00:02:46]>> Here comes our train. It's called the Ala Metropolis San Lauron. They come in twocar sets, often coupled to form fourc car trains. 106 of these sets were built in India and then shipped over here.

[00:03:15]The older Montreal Metro, which we will do a video about in a few weeks, has trains that run on rubber tires. And it is electrified by third rail. Not the REM, though. Nope. Here it's steel wheels on steel rails. And power is drawn from an overhead wire electrified at 1500 volts. The first thing Bear commented when we got on was, "This reminds me of the Sydney Metro." He's not wrong. Both use driverless awesome trains. They are quite similar with longitudinal seating and open gangways.

[00:03:45]Of course, the main attraction on board is the driver's cab, or should I say lack thereof. You can stand right up by the front window and enjoy the view. The REM is made up of several branches and has been opening in stages. The first part from Pro to Gal opened on July 31st, 2023. The next section to open was the extension to demon on November 14th, 2025. Most recently, the branch to Anzal opened just about a week ago on May 18th, 2026.

[00:04:17]This happened right after we were there, so we weren't able to check it out.

[00:04:20]Though, we did see some trains testing on it and we saw one of the stations.

[00:04:28]There is one more branch left to open going to Montreal Airport. This will likely open at the end of 2027, completing the REM network and finally giving Canada's second largest city an airport rail connection. Of course, three branches means triple the frequency on the shared core section.

[00:04:46]Interestingly, this line we are on isn't a new line. It has been an electric commuter railway since 1918. Back then, it was operated by the Canadian Northern Railway. After them, the Canadian National and then finally a series of public agencies operated train service.

[00:05:01]Most recently, EXO, they closed the Exo de Monta line in 2020 so that it could be converted to become part of the REM.

[00:05:10]That included making the whole thing double tracked, removing all railroad crossings, and completely upgrading every station. Now, 5 years is a long time for regular commuters to not have access to a train, but I dare say that the results are worth it.

[00:05:27]A train every few minutes all day every day leaving from modern enclosed stations.

[00:05:38]>> The way REM was funded and built is also worth briefly mentioning. It was built by CDPQ, the company responsible for managing and investing Quebec's pension money.

[00:06:02]CDPQ funded most of it, although the province and federal governments did put up some money, too. All in all, the 67 km network cost 8.3 billion Canadian dollars to build. The public authority I mentioned earlier, the ARTM, collects the ticket revenue for the REM. They then pay CDPQ 72 cents for every passenger kilometer traveled on the system, which CDPQ sees as a return on investment to increase people's pensions. So, to the boomer who received $13 from the distance I traveled, you're welcome. It's on me.

[00:06:54]We are approaching Kotas station. This station is brand new. It was never part of the original demonia line. It was built specifically as a transfer station between the REM and another exoline, the Masush line. When the Musk line opened, its trains would use the Demona line for the final stretch into downtown they could reach the central station.

[00:07:15]However, when that closed for the conversion, Muskush Line trains had to take an atrocious detour to get to downtown. Codelia station fixes that problem by creating a transfer station.

[00:07:28]The Musk line trains terminate here and then passengers continue their journey downtown on REM.

[00:07:48]Weirdly, at the next station, V Royale, the front doors didn't open.

[00:07:55]But now, let's briefly talk about all the hype that REM has received. With this being such a great and modern system and bearing in mind how disappointing many other systems are in North America, it's no surprise that so many bloggers and YouTubers are extremely excited about REM. Riding it for the first time and of course having studied it before, I have to say I do share a lot of that excitement. It is truly an excellent train. In the 20th century, many cities in the Western world built entire transit networks from scratch. But in the 21st century, such openings have become a very rare occurrence. To have one here in Canada is a big deal. The REM is futurep proofed thanks to automation, and it has clearly taken customer comfort into consideration. There's a lot to be excited about. But excitement can lead to exaggeration, and I've noticed some of that. I've heard people refer to this as the greatest transit project of our lifetime. I don't know. My lifetime began in the late '9s. And in my lifetime, multiple countries have opened their first highspeed rail networks. The Asella began service. The bridge between Sweden and Denmark opened. Copenhagen, Sydney, Doha, Riad. They all built fully automated metro systems. Don't forget Honolulu's new line. The Goldard base tunnel opened. Seattle opened a light rail line on a floating bridge. Mexico opened inter urbans. And China built metros and highspeed lines at a dizzying pace. I hope to live for a few decades more and witness even greater projects opening. The rim is cool, a big deal, but is it really a bigger deal than any of the other projects mentioned? It's the construction of new lines and the conversion of an existing rail line into an automated one. Sydney's doing the same thing. Don't get me wrong, I think it's a very good project, great even, just not the greatest of all time. And it doesn't have to be, except for clickbait purposes, of course. At least it's not yet. It could be if it sets off a chain of events and opens the eyes of lawmakers across North America. What if more cities got their own REM? How incredible would that be? In some ways, Montreal is different from other North American cities. But in other areas, there are many similarities. And there are fantastic opportunities for REM like systems across the continent. Imagine if the Metro Electric District in Chicago was automated with trains every few minutes and if they extended it underground deeper into the city. See what I'm talking about? I think what makes the REM so exciting for North American commentators is the lack of really anything similar on this continent. But if other cities see the success of REM and then are inspired to build their own, that's when I will get in line and join the chorus praising this as the start of something great.

[00:10:33]But for now, it's just a really fantastic addition to Montreal. I'll be back to ride it again someday. You may have noticed that now we're in a tunnel.

[00:10:42]This is the Mount Royal Tunnel, the third longest tunnel in Canada. Built by the Canadian Northern Railway, this tunnel was created to give trains a direct way into downtown Montreal. It was electric from the very beginning when the first train ran in 1918. Almost immediately, it was taken over by the Canadian National Railway. And most recently, it was used by the Exo de Monta line until its closure and conversion to REM. Two new stations were built into the tunnel so passengers could transfer between REM and the metro, which I think is really cool. At the end of the tunnel is Gontrol where the platforms are located directly parallel to the ones used by Via Rail, Amtrak, and Exo. Although this train will continue to pro, the central station is our final destination for today as both our hotel and the concert are nearby here. It took about 25 minutes to travel the approximately 19 km or 13 mi from Sunnybrook Station to here.

[00:11:42]I did think it was notable how quiet things were on a weekday night at 7:00 p.m., especially compared to the metro, which we rode right after this and which was completely packed.

[00:12:14]Wow. I am very impressed. You know, sometimes when people hype something up online, I get a little bit skeptical, but this is worth the hype. I mean, the train was so quiet, so smooth. The fact that you could stand in the front and just enjoy the view. Like I saw people that were not rail fans that were coming to the front just cuz it was a nice place to stand.

[00:12:32]>> I'm impressed.

[00:12:33]>> Did you think of rim?

[00:12:35]>> It was great. It was good. Smooth. Very smooth. Um pretty quick, too. It's interesting to see how they use the remnants of the Echo line um and incorporate into a very efficient system is food for thought.

[00:12:50]I'm thinking of you Chicago and several other cities.

[00:12:55]Anyway, that's all from us today. We've got a show to catch. If you enjoyed this video or learned something new, please subscribe to Trains are awesome and we'll see you next time.