MONTREAL -- The City of Montreal is pushing ahead with plans to install protective side guards installed on snow removal trucks.
The city said it will add a clause to its snow-removal contracts, and private companies will be required to have protective bars on the sides of their trucks to prevent people from falling underneath.
"There are six boroughs that all their trucks including the city trucks but also private trucks have lateral guards - St-Laurent, Ahuntsic-Cartiervielle, Villeray-Saint-Michel-Parc-Extension, St-Leonard, Anjou, Riviere-des-Prairies, Point-aux-Trembles," said Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante. "Our goal is to have all the trucks equipped but it will take a little while as different contracts are being negotiated and this is borough by borough."
The pressure for mandatory guardrails has been consistent since 2005 when Jessica Holman-Price was killed by a snow removal truck in Westmount after sliding underneath the wheels while trying to rescue her brother who was trapped.
Her brother survived, and former Governor-General David Johnston honoured her posthumously in 2015 with the Medal of Bravery.
When opposition leader in 2017, Plante tabled a motion mandating all trucks working for the city to have side guards.
Plante and the city's point person on snow removal said only two boroughs - LaSalle and Anjou - will launch snow removal operations after the latest snowfall.
