Montreal Subway Urban transit first came in 1861 where a first line of horse-drawn cars started to operate on St. James St. Eventually, as Montréal grew, a comprehensive network of streetcar lines provided service almost everywhere. But urban congestion started to take its toll on streetcar punctuality, so the idea of a subway was soon considered. The Montréal Métro (French: Métro de Montréal) is a rubber-tired metro system, and the main form of public transportation underground in the city of Montréal, Québec. The Metro, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), was inaugurated on October 14, 1966, during the tenure of Mayor Jean Drapeau. Originally consisting of 26 stations on three separate lines, the Metro now incorporates 68 stations on four lines measuring 69.2 km (43.00 mi) in length,serving the north, east, and centre of the Island of Montréal with connections to Longueuil (South Shore), via the Yellow Line, and Laval (North Shore), via the Orange line. The metro system is currently Canada's busiest subway system in total daily passenger usage, serving an average of 1,050,800 daily passengers on an average weekday (as of Q1 2010). In 2008, 291.6 million riders (transfers not included) used the Metro. According to the STM website the metro system has transported over 6 billion passengers as of 2006, roughly equivalent to the world's population. Montréal has built one of North America's largest urban rapid transit schemes, serving the third-largest number of passengers overall behind New York and Mexico City, and attracting the second-highest ridership per capita behind New York. The Montréal Metro was inspired by the Paris Metro and in turn is also the inspiration for the Lyon Metro and Marseille Metro, as well as the Mexico City Metro, all constructed a few years later, and all which also share the same rubber-wheel car design and similar Montréal Metro station architecture. Thanks Magik