Mutt-ro: Dogs will soon be able to ride the Montreal metro

Sep 21 2022, 4:22 pm

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) announced on Wednesday that dogs would officially be allowed to ride with their owners on the metro as of October 15.

While the news came as a delight to dog owners across the island, the newly updated rules are certainly worth noting.

The STM published the following set of regulations that dog owners must obey if they wish to bring their pets on board.

Riding the métro with your dog

  • Dogs may only be brought into the métro between the hours of 10 am and 3 pm and after 7 pm Monday to Friday, as well as on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.
  • All dogs must wear a muzzle from the time they enter the station until they leave.
  • Keep a firm grip on your dog’s leash, leaving no more than 1.25 metres (49 inches) of slack between the hand holding the leash and the dog.
  • Only one dog per customer is allowed.
  • Dogs are not allowed on any seats on métro trains or platforms.

Entering the métro

  • Customers travelling with pet dogs must enter and exit métro stations via STM-owned entrances only.
  • For now, Longueuil–Université-de-Sherbrooke station is excluded from this pilot project. Discussions are underway with the entities responsible for the outer entrances to this station.
  • Some métro entrances are located in buildings that do not belong to the STM. The owners of those properties may not allow dogs inside their buildings. If you are planning to use one of those entrances, please check ahead of time.

During trips

  • Customers with dogs must use the back or middle train cars and avoid using the frontmost car, as it is used by school groups, daycares, wheelchair users and cyclists.
  • Dogs are not allowed on escalators.
  • Dogs are allowed on elevators only if there is enough room.
  • Businesses and services inside métro stations have the right not to allow dogs. We recommend checking before making the trip with your dog.

Since the local SPCA launched a petition entitled Fido Wants to Take the Metro last December, discourse regarding the status of dogs on the Metro among pet owners and politicians have taken place. The petition, which garnered over 16,000 signatures, aimed to stop the prohibition of leashed dogs in public.

When the motion was brought to Montreal’s City Council last April, members voted unanimously to allow leashed dogs.

A 2020 study by the Association des médecins vétérinaires du Québec indicates that nearly one in four Montreal households currently have a dog.

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