An online petition asking the STM to lift its age limit on student rates is gaining momentum.

The petition has more than 13,000 signatures on it.

The reduced rate for a monthly student pass is $49 for people 25 and under compared to $82 for a regular monthly pass.

Sophie Lamontagne, the woman who started the petition, argues there should be no age limit.

"There is no age to invest in one's education," she wrote in the petition.

"There shouldn't be any age limits to have access to the student rate."

She says the regular fee is difficult to afford for people on a lower income.

Older students are often parents who have different financial burdens, Lamontagne added.

A spokesperson for the STM said in an email the decision on whether to change rates could soon be up to the regional transit authority, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain, if a bill introduced at Quebec's National Assembly is passed.