Berri–UQAM is the 2nd deepest station in the network, and also the busiest station in the network, transfers not included. If transfers were included, the 13 million passengers number would rise to about 35–40 million a year.
History
Bronze plaque commemorating the opening of the Montreal Metro in 1966
The station opened as Berri–De Montigny with the opening of the Metro on October 14, 1966, serving the Green and Orange lines.[5]
In 1988, the station was renamed Berri–UQAM after the Université du Québec à Montréal located adjacent to the station.[5] On September 2, 2001, a canister of tear gas was set off inside the station, forcing the evacuation of the 300 passengers inside.[8]
Station refurbishment
In 2007, STM began planning to refurbish the station, after learning that the waterproofing of the station had been compromised.[9] Construction began in 2010, with renovation of electrical, mechanical and structural components including waterproofing the underground roof and upgrades to fire protection and ventilation systems.[10] The work also included improvements to lighting, refurbishment of staircases, new architectural facings including wall tiling and ceilings, rearranging of corridors to the Orange and Green line platforms, as well as refurbishment and renovation of the entrance buildings.[10]
The renovation and upgrade works were planned for completion in 2025,[11] however media reported in April 2024 that the work was significantly behind schedule.[12][13] Estimated completion of the waterproofing works is now "around 2027 to 2029".[12]
Accessibility
Alongside the renovation work, the station has been made partially accessible through the addition of elevators. In September 2009, two elevators connect the Orange Line platforms to the mezzanine,[14] with an elevator connecting the street to the mezzanine opening in 2010. In November 2020, work to make the Green Line platforms accessible was completed, with the opening of two additional elevators.[15] As of 2023[update], construction to provide elevators to the Yellow Line is underway, despite the technical challenge of excavating and building new elevators 28 metres (92 ft) below street level.[10]
Upon completion of the works, the station will have seven elevators allowing step-free access to all three lines, as well as to the street.[10]
Overview
Green Line platformYellow Line platform
Designed by Longpré and Marchand, the station serves three lines: the Green, Orange, and Yellow Lines.
The main part of the station is a cruciform cut and cover volume built underneath the intersection of rue Berri and boulevard de Maisonneuve; the volume is so large that the station's design had to include massive pillars to support the street.
This central volume contains three levels. The upper level contains the rectangular mezzanine at its centre, with fare gates on all four sides; the arms extend out to the station's entrances, with two more entrances at the crossing, and are also lined with shops and services. Staircases lead from the mezzanine to the landings on either side of the Orange Line. These landings provide views of the great volumes over the Green Line platforms below.
From the Green Line level, escalators and hallways connect the rest of the station to the Yellow Line terminus, built in a tunnel a block away under rue Saint-Denis, around 28 metres (92 ft) below the surface. Limited space in the Yellow Line tail tracks cause trains to reverse both in the tail tracks and in the foretracks when they leave the station.
All three lines have side platforms. The station was the first to be equipped with the MétroVision information screens, which displays news, commercials, and the time until the next train arrives.
The mezzanine can be accessed from the street via elevators in the Grande Bibliothèque du Québec and UQAM's Pavillon Judith-Jasmin; but those buildings are closed during some of the Metro's operating hours. However, there is an elevator in the Saint-Denis exit, which opened in June 2010 and is open throughout the operating hours.
The Hommage aux fondateurs de la ville de Montréal mural
The station has a total of four independent exits: three integrated into buildings (the Berri, Saint-Denis, and Place Dupuis exits) and one free-standing kiosk (the Sainte-Catherine exit). The station also contains several underground city connections, listed below.
The 1967 station was designed by Longpré et Marchand, with a 1999 free-standing kiosk entrance designed by architect Gaétan Pelletier.
Three paintings by Robert LaPalme [fr] are located over the main staircase leading to the Yellow Line terminus. Originally located at the entrance to Expo 67, they represent three themes of the Expo: science, recreation, and culture.
A plaque by LaPalme and Georges Lauda, commemorating the inauguration of the Metro, is located at the centre of the mezzanine. It is enclosed in a black circular bench, a popular meeting site, referred to as la rondelle (the hockey puck) or la pilule (the pill) or "le banc des fous" (the crazy bench).
In the newer Sainte-Catherine entrance pavilion, a statue of Mother Émilie Gamelin by Raoul Hunter, commemorating Place Émilie-Gamelin (also called Berri Square) in which the entrance is located. The statue is owned by the City of Montreal.
The most recent art piece put in place inside the station is the Wall of Peace on the concourse level of the Yellow Line. It consists of coloured metal plates bearing the word "peace" in multiple languages.
Origin of the name
Berri–UQAM is named for both Berri Street, so called since 1663, and for the Université du Québec à Montréal. The university has taken to using UQAM as its abbreviation, which it displays as UQÀM (with a grave accent over the A as its logo; the station retains the UQAM form).[citation needed]
Until 1988, the station was named Berri–De Montigny;[16] rue de Montigny is the former name of boulevard de Maisonneuve in this area. Small stubs of de Montigny street still survive in Downtown Montreal between Saint Laurent Boulevard and Saint Urbain Street and in the Montréal-Est suburb.[citation needed]
^"Project Berri-UQAM Séance d'information"(PDF). Société de transport de Montréal (in French). 3 February 2022. Retrieved 20 June 2023. Un diagnostic de la station a été réalisé en 2007. On observe une défaillance généralisée de la membrane d'étanchéité. lle doit être remplacée afin d'éviter des dommages difficilement réparables aux infrastructures et des perturbations importantes à l'exploitation du métro
^ abSaint-Louis, René (2 April 2024). "Un important retard dans les travaux à Berri-UQAM" [A significant delay in the work at Berri-UQAM]. Radio-Canada (in French). Retrieved 7 May 2024. La période de fin n'est pas établie encore, mais les dates tournent autour de 2027 à 2029. [The end period is not established yet, but the dates are around 2027 to 2029.]
