Renewed calls to remove Terrebonne bike path in NDG amid parking and traffic concerns

Residents are once again calling for the removal of the bike path along Terrebonne Street in NDG to be taken down because of disruptions to traffic and parking.

St-Monica's Parish, located on Terrebonne Street, has seen a 30 per cent drop in attendance in the last year, and the church blames the bike paths on both sides of the street and its transformation into a one-way street.

"We've had zero weddings this year during the wedding season, and we've had zero funerals during the year since," said church warden Paul Wong.

Resident Nora Kelly is a cyclist who uses bike paths to get to the West Island and the downtown core but refuses to use the Terrebonne bike path.

"I do not want to be counted as one accepting this plan," she explained.

When the borough first installed the bike path four years ago, the backlash was so strong that the borough decided to remove it.

"Montreal's a winter city, yet there are more kilometers of bike lanes in this city than Sydney, Australia, or Miami or Tel Aviv or Rio de Janeiro. In fact, there's triple the bike lanes in Ontario and Toronto," said former city councillor Marvin Rotrand.

The borough returned with a modified plan, but the official opposition, Ensemble Montreal, said the administration did not listen to its citizens.

"Why would you bring people together to find a consensus, only to ignore the consensus?" said Ensemble Montreal city councillor Sonny Moroz.

However, Projet Montreal rejected the accusation, saying there were consultations but acknowledged that it couldn't please everyone.

"We did the analysis for different potential projects for that street, and we retained the one that was the safest and the one that would accommodate some of the demands that were made by everybody involved," said Project Montreal city councillor Despina Sourias, noting that Moroz was on board with the plan.

"I have to say I'm very surprised about Mr. Moroz who really voted in the changes with us in June to make these changes. He voted yes for them. You didn't say no."

However, the borough also said it is open to modifications if residents come forward with specific issues.