Parents with children at Roslyn Elementary School in Westmount are concerned road construction in the area is dangerous for students.
Just days before school started at the end of August, Hydro Westmount ripped up a stretch of Grosvenor Avenue, above Westmount Avenue, to replace some pipes.
The sidewalk is now a pile of rubble; hundreds of students use the entrance on Grosvenor Avenue every day.
With no sidewalk, children are walking on the street, with only a makeshift barrier separating them from passing cars.
“I find it dangerous, more than normal, because they let the children out this door and they all come out onto the street,” said parent Evonne Hart.
“The cars have to speed past here because there is no room, so the kids are spilling into the traffic. It’s dangerous.”
Hydro Westmount gave the school very little warning, according to Principal Nick Katalifos.
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He said the company agreed not to do work during the morning and afternoon school rushes, but in the last few days, no one has shown up at all.
“The parents are frustrated, there is no doubt about that because they want to be able to enter the school in the morning safely,” he told Global News.
Katalifos said the school is relying on Montreal police for help.
Officers show up every morning and afternoon and help ensure the kids get into school safely.
He said the school held an assembly last week and teachers talked to students about the importance of being extra vigilant on the roads.
“Thankfully, we are working closely with the local police and Westmount public security to ensure everyone’s safety,” Katalifos said.
“But we are anxious to see the work done.”
Parent Cory Deegan said the work has caused chaos for parents.
“There were moments where parents were on the other side of the street, asking their kids to come across to them and cars were still coming up. That is when the police came and helped out,” Deegan said.
The work comes on the heels of a major renovation of the Roslyn school playground that isn’t quite finished yet.
As for the pipe replacement project, Westmount Hydro officials weren’t available for an interview.
Many parents insisted the work should have been done in the summer.
“I feel it should have been completed earlier during the year,” said Hart.
“I think it’s taking too long.”
The work was initially supposed to take less than two weeks.
It’s unclear when it will be completed.
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