Upcoming vote to reduce speed limits in Cote-des-Neiges—NDG after multiple crashes

Monkland Grill's owner is still sweeping up shards of glass, days after a car crashed into his business, located in Montreal's Notre-Dame-de-Grace (NDG) neighbourhood.

"I was shocked, you know, it was unexpected," said Mohammad Ebrahim Jahanian.

On Wednesday night, two cars collided at the intersection of Somerled and Bessborough Avenues. After the impact, the white Hyundai hit a parked car and careened through the restaurant's terrace into the front door.

Despite the damage, no one was injured.

There were customers in the restaurant at the time, but they weren't sitting near doors or windows, said Jahanian.

Earlier that day in Cote-des-Neiges, 55-year-old Sigal Bar Weizmann died after she and another pedestrian were hit by a car. It happened on Bourret Avenue near McLynn Avenue.

A police source tells CTV News that speed was not a factor in either crash. However, some Cote-des-Neiges-NDG borough residents say they are concerned about street safety.

In 2018, the borough reduced the speed on residential streets to 30 kilometres per hour and some thoroughfare roads to 40.

Borough mayor Gracia Kasoki Katahwa says elected officials will vote to lower thoroughfare speed limits even more in July.

"We want to bring them to 40, and some of them actually we want to reduce them to 30 kilometres per hour," she said.

The proposition to reduce speed limits from 50 to 40 km/hr would apply to Jean Talon, St Jacques and Cote-des-Neiges Streets.

Meantime, streets such as Barclay Avenue, Plamondon Avenue, and Edouard-Montpetit Boulevard may have their speed limit reduced to 30 km/hr.

But that idea isn't sitting well with everyone in the neighbourhood.

"Changing speed limits, I don't think is going to do it. They have to make people pay for their mistakes, and that's it," said NDG resident Julia Witkowski.

For her part, the borough mayor argues that boosting police presence isn't the solution.

"Police are already more present on Cote-Saint-Luc Street, particularly in the evening and nights, because they know that people go fast, so they were already there," said Kasoki Katahwa.

Residents and business owners hope the proposed measures work, so the community doesn't have to pick up the pieces after yet another crash.