MONTREAL – Elected officials in Montreal’s Sud-Ouest borough argue not enough is being done to promote cycling in their neighbourhood.
Montreal city councillor Craig Sauvé argues only 75 metres of new lanes or paths have been created in the last three years.
He’s hoping that will change with a new north-south route that will link the Sud-Ouest to downtown.
“We need it now because it’s the only borough, it’s the only major neighbourhood that’s not connected to downtown,” he told Global News.
Cycling enthusiasts agree, arguing less than five per cent of cyclists use their bikes as a mode of transportation to get to work or school.
Dan Lambert with Montreal’s Bike Coalition blames elected officials who, he insists, don’t do enough to promote cycling in the city.
“How committed are they to it? If there is going to be a model share that means a shift from driving to cycling or walking,” he told Global News.
Further west, a separate cycling issue is unfolding.
Transports Quebec plans to close the southern side of the Lachine canal bike path below the Highway 15 overpass until 2019.
The northern portion of the same path will close in the fall.
Cyclists will be detoured onto a new bike route running next to Côte-St-Paul Street.