Cellphones, OPUS cards, keys, wallets and umbrellas being dropped onto the Montreal métro system’s tracks caused 870 minutes of delays throughout the system in 2016, not including December.
The previous year, users dropping 516 items on the tracks stopped the métro service for 895 minutes. It’s part of the reason why the Société de transport de Montréal installed bright yellow signs across different stations in November warning people about standing too close to the edge and dropping their personal belongings below.
“These delays are avoidable,” the STM said in a statement, inviting users to keep their phones and wallets in their pockets when waiting for the next métro train.
According to STM spokesperson Amélie Régis, the STM undertakes similar campaigns each year to raise awareness about the different reasons users experience delays throughout the system. The campaigns are based on the behaviours the STM notices the most throughout the year, Régis said.
This year’s campaign signs, located on walls and floors alike, have been put in place in stations where the STM has reported the most items being dropped.
Overall, about half of delays that last more than five minutes are caused by users, whether it is people holding the doors open, dropping items, getting sick, or falling onto the tracks.
If someone does drop something down on the tracks, regardless of its sentimental value or how expensive it may be, Régis said it’s imperative people don’t try to retrieve it on their own. Not only is it prohibited, she said, but there’s also a 750-volt current going through the tracks.
“Clients should let an STM employee know about it, and one of our employees will retrieve it at an opportune moment that’s least likely to impact the métro service,” Régis said.
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