Take the 747 Express Bus in Montreal

If you need to travel between downtown Montréal and Montréal-Trudeau airport, you can take a shuttle called the 747 Express bus. If you're from out of town, though, it can take a little bit of wandering and trial and error to take this bus (as with any unfamiliar metro). This article will provides some steps that may help you spend less time wandering and more time enjoying Montréal.

Steps

From the airport to downtown

  1. From your gate, follow the signs to public transport. You will see a bus symbol. The 747 picks people up towards the end of the pick up area, on the roadway that passes alongside the doors (not the further roadway, where many other buses stop). You will see a sign, and there will probably be a line of people waiting.
  2. Get exact change. This bus does not accept bills, but it does accept coins. If you don't have coins, there is a machine that is just inside the door which will accept bills. The cost is $10 (Canadian). When you use the machine, you will get a card to use when you board the bus.
  3. Board the bus. Insert the coins into the coin slot or scan the card you got from the machine. Keep the card; it's good on the bus and metro network for the next 24 hours.
  4. Pick up a route map. They are toward the front of the bus, near the driver. Look at the map and determine which stop is closest to your destination. You can also find the route map online before your trip (http://stm.info/English/bus/planibus/747.pdf).
  5. Pull on the yellow cord along the top of the windows (or press the button on the poles) before your stop. This will tell the driver you need to get off.

From downtown to the airport

  1. Get exact change (coins only).
  2. Find your stop. This shuttle doesn't loop in downtown, so you can't just go to the stop where you were dropped off.
    • If you are getting on the 747 from the Berri-UQAM metro station, follow the signs to the 747 bus and bus terminal (gare d'autocars). Once at the bus terminal, look for door 15. The bus waits right outside this door. If you do not have exact change, this station has machines that will accept bills and give you a card to use.
  3. Board the bus and wait until you get to the airport.

Tips

  • Be alert to changes that may have occurred before this article was updated. The cost to get on the bus or the door number may change, for example.
  • The price for the 747 is now $10. April 4, 2014.
  • Buses on the 747 route are equipped with three luggage racks for the convenience of travellers.
  • The $10 fare is payable in cash aboard the bus - coins only, bills are not accepted. It also provides travellers with a transit pass valid on the STM bus and metro network for the next 24 hours.
  • Other public transit fares can also be used for the express service, at no additional cost, including regular and reduced fare weekly and monthly CAM cards, 1-day and 3-day passes, and monthly TRAM cards, for zones 1 to 8.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations