NDG residents divided over de Maisonneuve bike path repaving

Some residents in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce (NDG) are raising concerns about the decision to repave the de Maisonneuve bike path, arguing that other roads in the borough should be a higher priority.

The bike path, which stretches from Decarie West to Coffee Park in NDG, is considered one of the oldest on the island.

Rafael Philips, a student at Concordia University's Loyola Campus, rides the path daily and is glad to see it being repaired.

"Yeah, the bike path is pretty bad, so I'm really happy they're fixing it," Philips said.

Kate, a local resident, echoed his sentiments. "This one has been neglected for over 20 years, and finally they're just starting to work on it," she said.

However, Wendy, who was interviewed by CTV while driving by, didn't sound impressed.

"I'm handicapped. Finding a parking spot is next to crazy now, and I can't walk with my breathing!" she said.

Peter McQueen, City Councillor for eastern NDG, wants drivers to take note of the road resurfacing that's also underway.

"We just repaved Sherbrooke Street West between Girouard and Prud'Homme just in the last week or two. And they did a great job," McQueen said, acknowledging that repaving bike paths is easier to schedule than roadwork.

"There's no parked cars to move or parking regulations to change for a week or a night or anything," he added.

McQueen also noted the next major project in his district: the busy intersection of Decarie Boulevard and de Maisonneuve West.

"That'll be in the next week or two. And they're going to do the whole Upper Lachine viaduct down through, which has been in bad shape for a long time," he said.

"And that's quite a bit of money we're spending there on that. Of course, it needs to be done," McQueen said.

The councillor said the city is prioritizing the roads that need to be repaved before the start of the winter.