Above is a reply to the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), (Montreal's public transit agency), policy regarding pre-trip inspections of low floor buses. The STM selects not to conduct inspections of ramps which will enable paying clients in wheelchairs to embark and disembark on buses. Since this letter was received by the agency, there has not been any indications that the unjust policy will ever change to adhere to the STM's universal accessible objectives and Mayor Coderre statement regarding Montreal's desire of being number one when it comes to being a wheelchair accessible city. (La Presse, October 19th, 2014) Several attempts have been made to obtain details how the STM could improve the situation, however; the STM executives nor the Mayor has failed to reply with any action plan to conduct the inspection. Pre-trip inspection of ramps is a common practice that is carried out by many public transit authorities in North America.

1. December 10th
, 2014
Isabelle Trottier
Director, Communications and Customer Service
Société de transport de Montréal
Subject: Pre-trip inspections of ramps in STM low floor buses
Mme Trottier,
Thank you for your reply sent on November 14th
, 2014 regarding my questions about the
inspection procedures that the STM follows before buses depart from garages. I do understand
that buses with defective ramps cannot be taken out of service; however, I am concerned that
the STM does not conduct pre-trip inspection of ramps. I find this to be very problematic for
the following reasons:
 A ramp is a fundamental tool that ensures access to buildings and public services.
Failure to perform the inspection is counterproductive to any efforts in providing
universal accessibility. Being faced with defective ramps is a major source of frustration
for people with reduced mobility that have invested in a monthly OPUS pass.
 Some drivers are still not following the established protocols when the ramps are not
working. Paying clients in wheelchairs are still being forced to wait for the next bus with
the uncertainty of whether or not he or she will ever embark on a bus. Without a proper
pre-trip inspection of ramps, how can the STM be assured that a bus will be able to
allow individuals to be picked up in a timely manner?
 Without knowing which bus has a ramp that functions properly, the information that
is available on the STM’s website and smartphone application can be misleading.
What is the logic of providing information to paying clientele if the data is not
completely valid? The STM can indicate which buses are wheelchair accessible on a
schedule; however, if I cannot embark on a particular or consecutive buses, then I find
the information that is available to be of little use. A “smart” public transit agency
would be able to know of defective ramps and share such information with its clientele
in real time.
Based on my research and contacting professionals in the public transit sector from across
North America, I found that several public transit agencies (in cities of various sizes) do conduct
these inspections. I was referred to the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators
and the Motor Carrier Passenger Council of Canada. Both entities have a set of standards that
recommends transit operators perform pre-trip inspection of the ramps. Furthermore, I was
told by professionals that are members of American Public Transportation Association that the

2. inspection is an industry standard as transit agencies are mandated to respect the American
Disabilities Act in regards to providing public accessible transit services.
If STM selects not to find way to perform these inspections in the new fleet of buses and
executives do not begin to proactively discover a long-term solution to this issue, then I fail see
how the STM and the City of Montreal can be really dedicated to universal accessibility.
Govern yourself accordingly,
Ian Smith
CC: Philippe Schnobb
Denis Coderre
Marvin Rotrand
Mary Deros
Arel Salem
Brian Smith