Montreal Expo Express

Expo Express
Front view of Expo Express train at Place d'Accueil terminal in Cite du Havre
Overview
Type	Rapid Transit
Status	Demolished
Locale	Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Termini	Place d’Accueil La Ronde
Stations	5
Operation
Opened	April 1967
Closed	October 1972
Owner	Expo 67 City of Montreal (1968)
Rolling stock	Hawker Siddeley H1 variant; 8 × 6-car sets
Technical
Line length	5.7 km (3.5 mi)
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	Third rail 600 V DC
Route map Place d’Accueil closed 1968 Habitat 67 closed 1967 Saint Lawrence River Saint Helen Moyne Channel Notre Dame Notre Dame East opened 1969 Moyne Channel La Ronde Maintenance center This diagram:

The Expo Express was a rapid transit system consisting of five stations and a 5.7-kilometre (3.5 mi) route, running from Cité du Havre to La Ronde in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Built for the 1967 World's Fair Expo 67 at a cost of around CAD$18 million, the trains carried 1,000 passengers each and ran approximately every five minutes.

In 1968 the cars were sold to the City of Montreal for $1.8 million and operated by the Montreal Transit Commission (now the STM). The train remained in service for five more years (summer only); however, from 1969 onward, they ran on a shortened route when the terminus was cut back to Saint Helen's Island. After the 1972 season the service was withdrawn.

Not to be confused with the Minirail monorail which ran within the perimeters of the Expo Site, the Expo Express used standard railway technology, with two running rails and a third electrified rail identical to those of the Toronto subway. In fact, the trains used were a modified version of the Hawker Siddeley H-series used by the Toronto Transit Commission with one fewer door on each side, and streamlined ends. Consequently, unlike Montreal's Metro with rubber tires, the Expo Express used traditional steel-wheeled trains. The Expo Express also featured fully air conditioned passengers cars, whereas Montreal's Metro does not.