Fenced-off bike path frustrates residents
Borough negotiating with CP about opening the passage to Parc station
Q An avid Bixi-using friend of mine pointed out a very strange dead-end bike path on the corner of Mile End and de Castelneau Sts. leading to the Parc train station. The approximately 25-metre path has been blocked by a fence. A large poster has been put up inviting citizens to complain to Canadian Pacific and the Agence métropolitaine de transport to open the passage and allow Mile Enders access to the trains and presumably Parc/Parc Ex and vice versa. It’s not clear who has paid for the poster and how many complaints CP or AMT have received. What’s truly odd is that the city has paved a very short and very useless bike path. It must be a cause of serious frustration to Mile Enders or Park Ex residents trying to get into Mile End. Any ideas what gives and how to correct this?
Harry Dikranian, Pierrefonds
A In fact, the fence predates the bike path in that area. Residents and commuters in the area have been complaining to the borough for years to ask that the fence be opened to allow people to access the train from the other side of the tracks.
Marisa Celli, a spokesperson for Anie Samson, borough mayor of Villeray—St-Michel—Parc-Extension, said because this fence bars access to the station, people heading to the train from the east side of the tracks have to take a roundabout route through Jean-Talon and Hutchison Sts., and Ogilvy Ave. to get to the train station or the nearby métro.
She said the borough has been in discussion with CP, which owns the line, to remove the fence, but has been told that it’s a matter of safety.
For its part, the AMT, which runs the commuter train line and owns the station, said it has no objection to opening up the fence.
As for the bike path, Celli said it was put there by the business Kevric, which has an office building right next to the station. Kevric currently has a bus that it uses to shuttle employees to and from the station.
She said the borough had initially wanted a parking lot and pedestrian/cyclist access to the station, but now the borough will likely settle for just the pedestrian and bike access. She said the borough had hoped to get word from CP this month.
Jeremy Berry, spokesperson for CP, said the process was continuing.
“CP and the City of Montreal agreed to attempt to resolve their differences regarding pedestrian crossings through mediation with the Canadian Transportation Agency, a process which is still ongoing and which is confidential,” Berry said.
Q With all the construction going on downtown (and elsewhere), pedestrians frequently encounter “Trottoir Barré” signs. Recently, I saw two people walking up de la Montagne St., just past Ogilvy’s, which is under construction (the old hotel de la Montagne site, now excavated). They were told not to jaywalk by a police officer. He then ordered them to return to Ste-Catherine St. (about threequarters of a block away) if they wanted to cross or even continue up de la Montagne, (threatening them with) a ticket if they crossed or continued. What’s the protocol when a pedestrian encounters a ‘closed’ sidewalk? What happens if both sides of the sidewalk are closed?
David Hogarth, Beaconsfield
A: Montreal Police Sgt. Laurent Gingras says that when a sidewalk isn’t accessible, pedestrians are obliged to take the one on the other side. He said when both sidewalks are blocked, pedestrians are permitted to use the road, as long as it can be done safely. He added that when pedestrians use the road, they should walk against the flow of traffic, on the left side of the road. If the street is one-way in the direction they’re travelling, Gingras said pedestrians are encouraged to find another road, but if that’s not possible, they’re permitted to walk in the direction of traffic. He added that, if a police officer is directing traffic, pedestrians must follow his/her instructions.