Montreal’s electric bus route the first in Canada – The first three of 40 new long-range electric buses have arrived at the STM’s Stinson garage and within a few weeks, the Monk-36 bus line will have them on the road. The remaining buses will be gradually delivered starting in June 2020. The fleet will have 30 slow-charging electric buses and 4 fast-charging electric buses, allowing the 36 Monk bus route to be fully electric. The will also have air conditioning, two spaces for wheelchairs, 440-kWh Li-NMC batteries for a range of approximately 250 km and roof rails allowing for conductive charging (slow charging).
STM – The pantograph (the red equipment) 
STM – Slow charging station 
STM – installation of a quick-charging station
How fast can the STM electric buses charge?
They can be easily recognized by their distinctive colours illustrating its environmental qualities. More importantly, they will produce zero GHG emissions, reduce dependence on oil, have a quieter ride and support industry growth in the province as they are being made in Quebec. Because they can be charged in 5 minutes maximum (at the beginning and end of the line using a quick-charging station) the buses will be able to run all day. The STM further explains how they will maintain the charges: once the bus pulls up at its stop and into position below the recharging station, the pantograph extends and lowers itself next to the roof of the bus. Through conduction, the batteries of the bus are recharged. Once done, the arm retracts itself and the bus turns around for its next run. The bus will charge up its batteries again at the other end of the line, repeating the pattern throughout the day. At night, the bus will be plugged into a slow-recharging station, allowing the batteries to be fully recharged.
How much does a electric bus cost?
The STM chose the quick-charging technology after a number of studies were conducted. They took several criteria into consideration in order to test technologies that would meet every aspect of their operating environment such as; the transit experience for customers and drivers, service planning and delivery, maintenance and more. Quick-charging technology using a pantograph is a proven method in Europe and it matches well with the bus line’s needs, in addition to having proven itself under winter conditions. The whole project has a $16.7M budget with $11.9M in financial support from the Quebec Ministry of Transport, Sustainable Mobility and Transportation Electrification, $100,000 from Hydro-Quebec and a $4.7M contribution from STM. The project was also made possible with Volvo and Nova Bus having contributed an investment of $8M into research and development of the electric bus transportation system.
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