Looking Back

Before 1971

Public transportation was provided by the private sector, and the fleet of buses consisted of 42 transit vehicles for a ridership that gradually decreased from 11 million in 1956 to 2.5 million in 1971.

1969

The Outaouais Regional Community Act is adopted.

1971

The letters patent are issued and the Outaouais Regional Community Transit Commission (CTCRO) is created.

1972

The administrative premises at 54 Front Street in Hull are acquired.

The symbol and colours that still represent the STO today are adopted.

All the shares of the three public transit companies operating in the area, which are Hull City Transport, Transport Hull métropolitain and Transport d'écoliers du nord de l'Outaouais, are acquired for $2,250,000.

1973

13½ acres of land in the industrial park are purchased from the Société d'aménagement de l'Outaouais for $136,147.

The agreement on inter-provincial transportation ensuring that transfers are interchangeable between the STO and OC Transpo is introduced.

1974

The very first reserved bus lane is inaugurated on Gréber Boulevard - also a first for Quebec.

1976

The first fare increase is introduced since 1971 (from $0.30 to $0.40).

1977

An information service is introduced.

The new premises at 111 Jean-Proulx Street, which were fitted out at a cost of $6,300,000, are inaugurated.

1980

The Passe-Partout monthly bus pass is introduced.

1981

The Commission awards Trans-Spec Outaouais the contract to provide transportation for persons with disabilities.

School transportation is discontinued.

1982

Consultants are retained to computerize various technical tasks.

The management committee composed of various company directors is created.

1983

The informatics service is created.

Fischback and More are awarded a contract of $1,518,843 to computerize the network.

1984

The seven-member Commission, made up of the chairperson of the CRO and one representative from each of the six municipalities served, is formed.

Mrs. Constance Provost becomes the first chairperson of the CTCRO.

The car pooling pilot project is endorsed.

1985

The Sagepas (Système automatisé pour la gestion du parc autobus), an automated system for managing the bus fleet, is developed and implemented.

A contract is awarded to expand the garage and administration centre ($4,950,000), thereby increasing the capacity of the garage to 200 buses.

1986

The Infobus system that allows users to obtain the exact arrival times for the next two buses at a given stop is introduced.

1987

The use of paper money and pennies is abolished as a payment method.

The new premises are occupied upon completion of the expansion.

1989

The Ambassador program is endorsed.

1990

Air conditioning on new buses is endorsed.

Proposals for a system to control and collect tickets are submitted.

1991

Bill 110 granting the Société more autonomy, changing the name to the Société de transport de l'Outaouais, and adopting the new signature of the STO is implemented.

Deluc is commissioned to conduct a study on the Plan intégré du développement des réseaux routier et de transport en commun (integrated road and public transit systems plan), a first in Quebec.

An ad hoc committee on preferential measures to encourage public transit in the cities of Hull, Aylmer and Gatineau is created.

Reserved lanes for buses, car pools and taxis are introduced on Maisonneuve Boulevard in Hull.

1992

The Plan d'action pour instaurer des mesures préférentielles en faveur du transport collectif (action plan to introduce preferential measures to encourage public transit) is adopted.

1993

A joint campaign is launched with OC Transpo to encourage people to take public transit to work.

1994

The Plan intégré des réseaux routier et de transport en commun (integrated road and public transit systems plan) is tabled in November.

The terminus and parking lot for the Jean-René Monette Park-and-Ride are constructed to encourage ridership in Gatineau.

1995

The first User's Guide with all the schedules for all the bus routes is introduced.

Georges O. Gratton, Eng., becomes the General Manager and replaces Antoine Grégoire.

Jacques Lareau, Mayor of Buckingham, replaces Constance Provost as the chairperson of the Board of Directors.

The inter-provincial reserved lanes are introduced on the Portage Bridge.

1996

The STO celebrates its 25th anniversary with various activities: rides for $0.25, and a painted bus.

The Gréber-Fournier reserved lane is constructed.

Route 21, the Casino route, is introduced to serve the Casino de Hull and the Canadian Museum of Civilization.

1997

The project involving the computerized ticket validation system is announced and the supplier is chosen.

The Rivermead Park-and-Ride in Aylmer and the Encan Park-and-Ride in Masson-Angers are inaugurated.

The Buckingham-Masson-Angers network is restructured.

1998

The Société de transport de l'Outaouais is named the country's mass transit system of the year at the annual congress of the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) held in St. John's, Newfoundland, in June. Different criteria were used to evaluate the performance of participating transit companies, in particular vehicle maintenance, employee absenteeism, operational efficiency, innovation, goals and objectives, and professionalism.

1999

The STO organizes a field trip to France to study innovative technologies that can be applied to public transit in the Outaouais.

Claude Bonhomme, City Councillor for Hull, is named the new chairperson of the STO's Board of Directors, replacing Jacques Lareau.

The STO is named the official carrier for the Games of La Francophonie 2001.

The STO carries 12,856,314 passengers on its buses, an historic annual record.

The STO sets up an extensive shuttle service for the evening of December 31 to take spectators to the Harmony 2000 show at the Casino de Hull and the festivities on Parliament Hill. The STO carries close to 20,000 passengers during the evening.

2000

Transport 2000 Quebec bestows the Orange award on the STO to highlight the excellent services offered by the public transit corporation in 1999.

Right turns on red lights: a memorandum from the STO is presented to a parliamentary committee in Quebec City supporting right turns on red lights in response to the green paper on road safety in Quebec put out by the Quebec Minister of Transport, Guy Chevrette.

Changes are introduced to the express routes in Gatineau and to the rush-hour service in Buckingham and Masson-Angers.

Twelve new RTS buses consisting of six urban and six suburban buses manufactured by Novabus are added to the fleet.

Léger Marketing conducts an opinion poll on the STO's products and services.

2001

The third section of the Rivermead Park-and-Ride in Aylmer is completed.

The STO joins up with the Atlas de l'Outaouais on the Internet.

The conclusions on the update to the feasibility study for a regional and interprovincial rapid transit system are presented.

A new one-day bus pass - La Passe-temps - is created for tourists and occasional riders.

The STO co-ordinates the transportation logistics and provides travel for spectators, some 3,000 participants, heads of delegations and dignitaries, volunteers and media representatives for the Games of La Francophonie in the Hull-Ottawa region.

December 20, 2001

Bill 170 on municipal amalgamations in Quebec is adopted, effective January 1, 2002, to create a new larger city comprising the territories of the cities of Gatineau, Hull, Aylmer, Buckingham and Masson-Angers.

June 21, 2001

Bill 24 on public transit authorities is adopted, pursuant to which nine Quebec public transit authorities are brought under a single legal framework while retaining their status as individual entities.

November 21, 2001

The city council of the new City of Gatineau appoints five representatives to sit on the Board of Directors of the Société de transport de l'Outaouais, effective January 1, 2002: Lawrence Cannon, Chairperson Luc Montreuil, Vice-Chairman Richard Côté Pierre Phillion André Touchet

December 31, 2001

The Société de transport de l'Outaouais is dissolved.

2002

The new Société de transport de l'Outaouais is established.

The STO inaugurates a new customer service point at the Promenades de l’Outaouais mall.

The City of Gatineau appoints a representative for regular public transit patrons, Pierre Benoît, and a representative for paratransit patrons, André Sanche, to the STO's Board of Directors.

Mister R. Alain Labonté, City Councillor of Gatineau, is named on the STO's Board of Directors, replacing André Touchet.

Lawrence Cannon, the Chairman of the STO, becomes vice-chairman of the Association du transport urbain du Québec (ATUQ).

The Office de la langue française in Quebec honours the STO with a Mérite du français award in the language of commerce and business category for the quality of the French used in its campaign to introduce the smart card to riders.

Presentation of L’urgence d’agir, an important document on funding for the Société de transport de l’Outaouais.

The STO displays the colours of the Société on its first corporate flag.

The STO tests a hybrid electric bus with passengers.

Four federal departments participate in the STO's Employer Program as a one-year pilot project.

The Outaouais branch of the Quebec Ministry of Transport enrols in the STO's Employer Program.

The STO launches an upgraded version of its Internet site.

The first low floor buses made by NovaBUS are introduced to the STO's network.

The STO launches an automatic debit payment program for regular public transit patrons.

The STO submits a paper as part of the review of the financial framework for public transit in Quebec.

2003

Launch of a section especially for youth on the STO's Internet site.

The STO participates in the Canadian SmartDriver program.

New low floor buses are added to the vehicle fleet.

The STO holds the first Open House about the Rapibus..

The City of Gatineau announces the participation of its employees in the STO's Employer Program.

Mister Pierre Philion, City Councillor of Gatineau, is named Vice-Chairman of the STO's Board of Directors. Thérèse Cyr, City Councillor of Gatineau, is named on the STO's Board of Directors, replacing Luc Montreuil.

2004

The detailed feasibility study for the Rapibus is adopted by the STO's Board of Directors.

Transport Canada selects the STO for the project to introduce a hybrid electric-diesel bus to its fleet.

Installation of InfoPlus, the first variable message sign system that shows when buses will be passing in real time.

Creation of the Comité technique du service à la clientèle, a customer service technical committee to give a voice to public transit riders in the Outaouais.

Permanent discontinuation of the paper monthly pass on STO buses.

Construction of a rigid shelter annexed to the garage.

The STO is the first public transit corporation in Quebec to offer its drivers the SmartDriver program designed to teach them driving techniques to decrease fuel consumption. This helps to reduce greenhouse gases while also resulting in more relaxed driving.

Renewal of Georges O. Gratton's mandate as the STO's General Manager.

Renovations to the STO's service counter at the Promenades shopping centre.

Improvement to the Routes and Schedules section of the STO's Web site.

The STO participates in the first international "In town, without my car!" day in Gatineau.

Georges O. Gratton chairs the Red Cross fundraising campaign in the Outaouais.

2005

Inauguration of the new Freeman Park-and-Ride in the Hull sector.

Reconstruction of the Promenades terminus.

Rejuvenation of the For Student's Only section on the Web site.

The STO hosts the Canadian Urban Transit Association (CUTA) conference, which is held in Gatineau for the first time.

Restructuring of the bus network in the Hull sector.

The STO holds five public consultation sessions to gather comments from residents regarding the proposed 2005-2015 Strategic Plan.

The STO receives a national award for its arrangements along Alexandre-Taché Boulevard.

Quebec's Treasury Board requests that the STO conduct a study on the costs and benefits of the Rapibus.

The STO receives authorization to expand its bus garage.

The STO partners with Communauto to offer the Duo AUTO+BUS program.

Louise Poirier becomes Chairwoman of the STO in November, replacing Lawrence Cannon.

The STO forms the Club Sélect to recognize the exemplary road safety driving records of bus drivers.

The STO will have hybrid diesel-electric buses.

2006

The STO's new General Manager, Marie-Josée Bédard, takes office on October 1, 2006, for a five-year term.

For the 3rd edition of "In Town, Without My Car!" day in Gatineau, the STO inaugurates the new incentive parking facilities at the Hippodrome and unveils a bus decorated to mark a partnership with the Hippodrome Aylmer.

Inauguration of the new St-Dominique incentive parking facilities located in the Hull sector.

Unveiling of a decorated bus to support the major fundraising campaign organized by the Fondation de l’Université du Québec en Outaouais.

General Manager Georges O. Gratton announces his retirement from the STO and names his successor.

Launch of the UQO Forfait Cam Puce pass pilot project among full-time students at the Université du Québec en Outaouais.

Signature of the new collective agreement with professional and office employees.

New employment contract for bus drivers and maintenance employees.

2007

The STO launches an accessible services pilot project for people with reduced mobility.

The Rapibus project obtains funding: $195 million will be allocated to Gatineau's rapid public transit system.

Jeux du Québec finals in 2010: the STO teams up with the City of Gatineau as the official carrier.

The STO launches the LIGNE VERTE, its green bus route, as part of the Urban Transportation Showcase Program (UTSP).

The STO acquires the first two hybrid diesel-electric buses in Quebec.

2008

The STO's annual ridership increases by 6.5% over the previous year.

The STO receives the "Exceptional Achievement" award for its User's Guide from the Association de transport urbain du Québec (ATUQ).

The STO officially opens the Ligne verte.

The STO awards the Rapibus project management mandate to Pomerleau Inc.

Patrice Martin appointed STO chairman.

Line Thiffeault is appointed assistant general manager of the STO.

Creation of a new Operations department resulting from a merger between the former Operations and Service departments.

Michel Brissette is appointed general manager of the STO.

Creation of a new communications and marketing department.

2009

The STO takes another major step with submission of the preliminary design for the Rapibus.

The STO and the STM unveil the promising results of the Urban Transportation Showcase Program (UTSP).

The STO started the second phase of work to expand its garage and administrative centre.

The Quebec government confirmed full completion of the Rapibus.

November - The STO breaks the ground in the symbolic sod turning to announce the start of construction on the Rapibus.