'I don’t have any memories of my father': Villeray ghost bike honours cyclist killed nine years ago

Montreal -

An all-white “ghost” bike was installed in Villeray Saturday to honour Louis Morency who was struck and killed nine years ago while riding his bike to work.

Her daughter, Jeanne Morency, was only 15 months old.

“I don’t have any memories of my father,” she said.

Louis Morency was biking from his Rosemont home to work in Laval when he was struck by a garbage truck and died in 2012, according to Vélo fantôme, the organization that makes and maintains the ghost bikes.

The family requested the bike be placed at the intersection of Christophe-Colomb Avenue and Mistral Street.

Jeanne Morency says she hopes it will serve as a reminder to drivers that they share the road with vulnerable cyclists.

Her father was riding on a bike path that day. At 40-years-old, the lane is one of the oldest in the city.

Borough Mayor Giuliana Fumagalli calls it a “first generation” bike lane, with a serious flaw.

“It’s bi-directional,” she said. “They are considered dangerous.”

Single-direction paths, she says, are safer, and Vélo fantôme agrees.

“Two direction bike lanes are not the safest thing,” said Severine Lepage, spokesperson for Vélo fantôme.

“There are way more cyclists, way more cars, and the intersection is just too easy to turn [into].”

Saturday’s addition marked the first ghost bike to be installed in Villeray. Fumagalli says that’s one too many.

The mayor says she’s working on building more bike lanes in the neighbourhood.