À LA RECHERCHE DE VOTRE OPINION / RESEARCHING YOUR OPINION
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1). Hi Jeremy, received your mailing and will make this contribution:
Snow removal: I don’t really have much to say about the frequency. I’m aware of budgetary constrains. But I do have a serious problem with the sequencing. On our stretch of Connaught Avenue the snow plow always plows the East side of the street first. We live on the West side. It often takes several days before the West side is cleared. My complaints to the borough office have gone unanswered. Why can the snow removal team not alternate sides.I can not accept the argument that the trucks are configured to be loaded from the right because, when they do our side, they are loaded from the left anyway.
On-street parking: The stretch of Connaught Avenue between Portland and Sherbrooke has for years had a 60 minute parking limit on it. Nobody seems to know why. The restriction was never enforced so nobody did anything about it. But recently the “meter maid” has started to give tickets. At $53 this is more than just annoying. Several of us have called 3.1.1. Recently we were phoned by an City inspector who said he would look into it. But in the mean time we can not leave our car on the street. Could there be a moratorium placed on this ticketing, until the inspector has completed his study? There really is no good reason to have this parking restriction.
New Benny Library: When I still worked as a project director I regularly build $200+ million industrial complexes far more complex than the new library. But I only had 14 months to design and build these complexes. Every day I walk by the Benny complex and marvel at the inactivity on the site. It could not possibly go any slower. I had noticed this also when they build the Swimming Pool and the CLSC buildings. The City could save a lot of money if these projects were properly “spec”-ed. This would also reduce cost over-runs and “extras”.
De Maisonneuve: By all means, make it two-way. I am in favour of that idea. They were planning to do this anyway for the stretch between Decarie and Girouard as part of the new Super Hospital.
Lachine Canal access: I would very much like to be able to get from Western N.D.G to the Lachine Canal. Now it is very dangerous to walk along Pulman etc/ to get to the Canal and enjoy this marvelous linear park. Can the City incorporate a safe connection when the Turcot interchange work takes shape? How about a path (foot & bike) starting at the Can.Tire complex on St.Jacques and then gradually sloping parallel down the escarpment going East.
West Broadway Overpass: I strongly believe that the only solution tho the Western N.D.G. traffic problem is to build an overpass over the railway tracks at West Broadway. I feel this should be a most urgent project. It would seriously relieve the Elmhurst bottleneck.
Elmhurst Bus Terminal: The City should relax the soil contamination rule when it applies to a bus terminal. I fail to see how this would create a health problem. Give the S.T.M. dispensation and let them expand the current terminal into the abandoned Shell station lot. That way we can have the “bendys”. To go one step further, I would close up Elmhurst (except for emergency vehicles) and let the buses depart via Coffey Street to West Broadway. There could also be a 105-Express to Vendome going down de Maisonneuve once that is made two-way.
Cavendish Boulevard: Cavendish Boulevard should be connected straight to the section North of the tracks. It is the shortest connection and would be the most usefull, rather than the round-about way though the Bleubonnet’s district as it is now proposed. Cote St.Luc currently only has two outlets. In case of emergencies (flooding of both underpasses) there is no other way out. Increased traffic will bother some Cavendish residents but will solve a fast number of problems for others.
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2). Hello Mr. Searle, I have wanted to contact you for some time so thank you for reaching out to the residents of NDG with regards to our opinions. I have two issues: #1. Parking. There is only 1 hour of parking permitted on my street. I do not have a driveway. I have filed numerous applications for permit parking as well as permission to build a driveway(Both have been rejected) several times over the last 15 years that I have resided here. I have suffered a hear attack several years ago, and you can understand that moving my care every hour is just ridiculous and stressful in winter. The two Ville de Montreal departments have been rude and not at all helpful in helping me resolve this issue. I should mention that I work at home as a piano teacher so am not out from 9-5 as so many of my neighbours who have driveways. I am more than happy to pay the annual fee!!It would be a lot cheaper than all the parking tickets I have accumulated over the years from the one hour restriction. The First department (applying for a parking permit) boldly told me that I would have to move as they were not going to offer me this option. The second department (where I applied for permission to build a driveway) told me that if I paid $13,600.00 they would study the matter but this would not guarantee permission. I am a minute away from contacting the CBC or any media outlet that will listen to my dilemma. #2 issue. We have this big roundabout for buses at the end of Trenholme. Yet buses are consistently parked at the corner of Sherbrooke and Trenholme with their engines running. It is a dangerous place to park as it blocks the vision of drivers turning right onto Trenholme. We are only able to see pedestrians at the last minute. its only a matter of time before an accident happens. #3. The bike lane on de maissoneuve between Cavendish and Elmhurst would be better served if it wasn’t full of potholes . Everyone I know uses Sherbrooke St. because of the current state of the bike path in this west end. On a positive note, I am happy with the recreation facilities in NDG.Snow Removal seemed efficient. Bus lane was a good idea. I look forward to hearing from you with regards to my parking problem.
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3). Dear Mr. Searle,
First I would like to thank you for this opportunity to contribute to our neighbourhood’s life improvement. I’ve rarely seen such an initiative in 20 years in Montreal. I gladely participate to the survey and I hope I’l have the opportunity to benefit from its outcome.
My wife and I moved to NDG almost three years ago and we have found a new life here. I suggest I’ll take each point of the survey separately and answer each one of them.
Snow removal: I think NDG is a benchmark in the industry. I lived in Ahuntsic, Plateau-Mont-Royal and Centre-Sud. NDG offers the best snow removal service there is in Montreal. Hats off!
Roads and sidewalk: Sidewalks are great. Roads are terrible. I think NDG is competing with Ahuntsic-Cartierville to know what’s the most terrible Burrough in Montreal in terms of roads. The pot holes are the deepest, the lines do not exist, my car, even though its new, is a wreck already. I really think NDG has the worst roads in the entire island. I’m not even exaggerating. It’s terrible. Where is my money going?
Reserved residential parking: Nothing to complain about. I always have parking in front of my house (even in winter). People are respectful of our spots. We all know each other (and help each other in winter) when we need to park. In NDG, the problem is that some of the residents have very steep driveways (like my wife and myself) and that we have to park two cars on the street. It’s important then that the snow removing operations are well coordinated. The city can’t block two sides of the street at the same time. No need to implement ”parking stickers”
Food security: I’m not aware of that program, but I would be more than willing to support it and contribute.
Dog runs: There’s not a lot of ”free dogs” in NDG (in comparison to the Plateau), but a lot of residents, especially the older ones, are willing to let their animals do whatever they want. I’m liberal, accommodating, but I think a reminder on what good behaviour in terms of animals’ containment looks like. I’m fed up with all the residents who think their dogs can do their thing on my lawn. If there was a fine for all the dogs who unload on my lawn on a daily basis, NDG would be Manhattan.
Sports and recreation: Great! Nothing more to add. We struggle getting out of here and entering our beloved borough. Maisonneuve is unusable because it’s too narrow. We can no longer exit through St-Jacques, Côte-St-Luc is always jammed and the Décarie expressway is a mess. I like and respect cyclists, but we have to find a way for car users to get out of here. It’s terrible. I pay my house three times as much as my sister who lives in Longueuil and I can’t even go downtown with my car. She does every day. It’s a mess” I pay my mortgage with my mobility and I have none. Even if Maisonneuve was two way, it is so damaged, that we can’t drive on it. My wife will be giving birth on December 24, 2014, and I don’t even know how I will take her to St-Luc hospital. If things turn wrong, I will let you know.
Pedestrian safeway: Did you see what happened last week on Monkland? A 83 year old man dragged a man under his car on half a mile. This is what’s going on in NDG. The average age is 70 and it’s the most dangerous place to drive not because of the traffic but because of the age of the drivers, There’s not one single day where I’m not being endangered by an elderly. Period.
Porta toilets at metro station: No opinion.
Chairlifts at metro stations: No opinion.
The Décarie Tunnel: I would like a copy of the report. Whatever can help ease the situation at this place interest me.
The 105 West ad East: Whatever can ease the circulation is welcomed. Those buses are public dangers. The drivers are acting like they have spots on the roof. They are disrespectful, dangerous and they act like the world belong to them. They put my security and my family’s at stake more than once.
Cavendish highway extension: Go ahead” please!
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4). Bonjour M. Searle,
Merci pour votre lettre “À la recherche de votre opinion”. C’est une belle initiative de demander l’avis des citoyens ce cette façon. Voici mes commentaires concernant les différentes questions de votre lettre :
Enlèvement de la neige : Mon seul commentaire concerne les trottoirs; trop souvent les personnes âgées et les citoyens doivent utiliser la rue car les trottoirs ne sont pas déneigé assez rapidement. La fréquence de déneigement des trottoirs devrait être plus élevé pendant les tempêtes et ne pas attendre que la neige cesse. Je suis relativement jeune et j’ai un camion, je vois les citoyens jeunes et moins à pied tenter de se rendre à leur domicile avec des sacs et avec pleins de sacs et obligé de marcher dans la rue.
Routes et trottoirs : C’est ridicule l’état des rues Terrebone et Somerled, il y a des cratères et ça brise les voitures. De temps en temps on frappe de gros trous même sur les grandes rues tels Côtes St-Luc et ça prend des semaines à réparer ces trous. De Maisonneuve et la piste cyclable dans l’ouest de NDG c’est pire que Bagdad, c’est dangereux d’y faire du vélo.
SRRR : Nous aimerions beaucoup avoir une vignette, même si elle est payante, afin de nous stationner dans la rue. Il est très frustrant d’avoir 1 heure de stationnement de permis alors que nous sommes 2 à travailler de la maison. Nous sommes très très intéressé.
Sécurité des piétons : Sur la rue Trenholme, alors qu’il y a des familles et des enfants, il y a encore des voitures qui circulent à toute vitesse, il y en a qui dépasse ceux qui respectent la limite de vitesse, ce qui mets la sécurité de mes enfants et des autres en dangers flagrant. Nous aimerions avoir des poteaux et des dos d’ânes pour ralentir les véhicules. Il y en a sur Connaught et d’autres rues, pourquoi pas Trenholme ? Cette demande est importante pour nous. Depuis 13 ans que nous observons cette situation, quand les enfants joues dehors, je dois mettre mes propres cônes pour ralentir les fous.
Le tunnel Décarie : Je suis intéressé à recevoir le rapport.
Ligne 102 & 105 Express : oui, oui, oui, oui, oui
Prolongement de Cavendish : Nous pouvons bien en parler, mais…
Le prolongement de Cavendish, et de Jean Talon me semble inévitable d’un point de vue logique, mais est-ce réalisable avec les oppositions de Côte St-Luc, les commerçants de Bleue Bonnets, et les résidents de Cavendish qui qui devront assumer l’augmentation de la circulation ? Moi je suis en faveur pour le bien commun de Montréal, mais je sympathise avec les résidents des rue comme Cavendish.
L’intersection Sherbrooke & Elmurst : Nous savons tous que cette intersection est une honte pour la race humaine. Les traces de peintures et les nouvelles voies réservé sont de belles améliorations. Cependant, j’ai trois suggestions : 1) nous devrions avoir le meilleur ingénieur de la ville pour trouver une solution (une vraie) à cette intersection, 2) avoir un policier qui fait la circulation aux heures de pointes car en ce moment c’est n’importe quoi, au diable les piétons et les autres véhicules, c’est chacun pour sois, je ne parle pas de donner des contraventions à ceux qui s’arrête sur la ligne blanche, mais plutôt d’aider les véhicules et les piétons à avoir une circulation fluide. 3) Rallonger de quelques secondes la lumière verte sur Elmhurst en direction nord, en ce moment, il n’y a que 2 véhicule qui peuvent passer, ce qui force les véhicule à accélérer et à mettre la vie des piétons en danger, cette lumière doit être plus longue.
Intersection Queen Mary et Coolbrook (École Internationale de Montréal) : De temps en temps il y a un policier (très gentil) qui vient s’assurer que les véhicules s’arrêtent au feux, et il donne des contraventions sans avis. Il y a des fous qui méritent ces contraventions, mais il y a aussi beaucoup d’automobilistes qui tente simplement de traverser l’intersection et qui ne le peuvent pas tellement la circulation est difficile. J’aimerais que ce policier aide à la circulation plutôt que de donner que des contraventions, car avec ces contraventions, personne n’a aidé qui que ce soit qui tente de passer.
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5). Hi Jeremy,
Thanks for researching your constituent’s opinions. Your suggested priorities are mainly focused on car travel and public transport. I don’t have a car now, and am very happy with public transport, especially with the STM. (The ATM is poorly managed though, and I would like to see it better managed.)
The only idea on your list that I agree with is to support the NDG Food Depot. However I don’t think that a city facility is the best answer. It would likely restrict staff creativity in responding to clients needs, not just for food, but for compassion and connection.
My concerns are long term, such as the public debt that eats into our resources more and more, and will probably deprive our children and grandchildren of the benefits that we have. I’m also very worried about the environment, the web of nature that supports us with clean air, clean water and beauty. I often give thanks for the archway of trees on my street. I would like to see ways found to grow trees in barren neighborhoods.
I would like us to learn to work together, to encourage and benefit from each person’s creativity, and most particularly, to care for children living in poverty.
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6). Hello Mr. Searle,
i) more trash cans in our neighbourhood: we live on West Broadway between Fielding and Chester and often our young family goes out on “garbage walks” where we clean up the garbage that we find on the streets and sidewalks. We find it accumulates a lot around the corner of Chester and West Broadway. Could a garbage can be put there, and also perhaps on the corner of Fielding and West Broadway? These bus stops are used a lot and having a garbage there would increase the cleanliness of our area, I think. I wrote to you about this last fall but never heard back.
I recently received your newsletter, entitled “Researching Your Opinion”. As a resident of NDG, I appreciate you taking the time to consult on our opinion. Here are some of the top issues I’d like to see addressed:
ii) A stop sign around the north end of Loyola park: I find it odd that there is not a stop sign on Fielding at Doherty, at the northwest corner of Loyola park. Families are often crossing from the park to the other side of Fielding and it would just make sense to have a stop sign there. I also wrote about this in my same letter last fall but never heard a response.
iii) De Maisonneuve bike path: I work at Concordia’s Loyola campus and often have to go downtown for meetings, and often I choose to bike. But I have to say the western end of the de Maisonneuve bike path has really deteriorated over the years, there are so many potholes and bumpy areas. If you can advocate to have this part of the path improved, it would be great.
iv) Community gardens: I am an avid gardener and our backyard is a good size for me to fulfill my gardening there, however, before we had a house I used community gardens and am a big fan of them. I also support Action Communiterre’s Communal gardens, where everyone helps out on the same shared plot. I often think that the area around the Cote St. Luc shopping mall (the western end of the mall near the railroad tracks/overpass) is such an ugly little spot that could really use some beautification. Either making that into a community/communal garden, or just doing some low-key landscaping with natural plants would be wonderful. I have been reading a lot about the decline of our bee population, and it would be wonderful to give nature a boost in that vacant lot by planting some native plants, much as was done in the western section of the Loyola park (a native plant garden). I often notice how many families walk to and from the mall and it’s a shame that they can’t enjoy more of a green space that invites families in to interact with nature a bit more. Also I see that Action Communiterre seems to be building gardens behind the Reno Depot on St. Jacques, which I think is fantastic – please make more use of empty spaces like that to grow food or something other than just grass.
v) Composting: It is a travesty to me that in this day and age we do not yet have composting. When I lived in Nova Scotia 15 years ago they had an amazing composting and recycling program, and in comparison Montreal is in the dark ages in terms of handling waste. We have two compost bins at our house and we use them all year round, but I cannot understand why our city cannot organize itself to get its act together to have city-wide composting. I’m sure that’s a much bigger issue but had to comment on it!
vi) Speed Limit on West Broadway: I am not sure that anything can be done about this, but I will mention it regardless. I often find that people speed (sometimes at very high speeds in excess of 60 km/h, and sometimes even passing each other) down our street. It’s a wide street with fairly light traffic so I can see why it happens. But there have been a lot of young families moving into houses on this street in the last few years, and many of us are concerned about the speeders on our road, and how we never seem to see police stationed to catch speeders or monitor this. I suppose our street is too wide to have those traffic calming posts that people have to drive between, as I have seen on side streets, or speed bumps?
Also, quickly, to respond to some of the other questions in your notice: yes to porta potties at metro stations, and I am OK with opening up de Maisonneuve to east-west traffic *as long as* the bike path is still safe. I would hate for anything to diminish the safety of that path. For the Cavendish extension, I am split: it seems to make sense, and yet I’m concerned about the extra traffic as well. Snow removal was good this year.
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7). Hi Jeremy,
Together we investigated the width of Elmhurst being almost, but not quite, wide enough for 2 lanes in each direction twixt Sherbrooke and Harley.
We had Sherbrooke with parking on each side and almost, but not quite, enough room for 2 lanes in each direction. Now we have a parking/bus lane on each side and one very wide lane in each direction. Why not have 3 lanes one of which alternates direction according to traffic. Also , wide lanes encourage increased velocity. Your idea of two way traffic on de Maisonneuve would reduce speed so we could get a double bene.
Traffic is complicated at Elmhurst, Patricia, Sherbrooke – maybe a round-about would solve this and provide an island for pedestrians. And there should be a pedestrian bridge from the bus turn around over ALL the tracks.
Bendy buses are a good idea – so is having a zone 1 bus/metro AND train pass at same price
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8). Hello Mr. Searle
I am writing to you as I read the flyer you sent around this week via Canada Post. I would like to comment on your statement about the Cavendish extension. You said that opening the extension would bring more traffic to streets like Elmhurst, if I understand you correctly. I would have to disagree, as the motorist do not actually use Elmhurst to get to the highway, they use Connaught, day and night (Including trucks which are not permitted).
I have been fighting this fight for over 5 years now and have had no resolution. A study was done under the office of Susan Clarke and still no resolve other than a useless speed bump. The speed sign at the end of Connaught actually clocked a truck from Clifton Dram Inc. Doing 71KM per hour! This was at 4:00 in the afternoon as children were out and about.
I am pasting my conversation between Susan Clarke and myself so that you can see where we left off. I do hope you will be able to come up with a reasonable solution to the problem. When you ran for office many years ago, we had a discussion at my front door and you had said the only way to help solve the issue was to reverse the direction of traffic on this street. I do hope this is still a possibility, or at least the thought of placing a street light instead of a stop sign may help, but I highly doubt it.
Regards,
Vicki
CONVERSATION BETWEEN SUSAN CLARKE AND I STARTS HERE:
I have some people re-looking at the issues and will keep you posted. Regards, Susan
Susan Clarke, Conseillère de ville City Councillo, District Loyola District (NDG)
Date: Mon, 27 May 2013 20:53:57 +0000 > Subject: Re: Traffic issues on Connaught > > Hi Susan > > Thank you and I would love to say that the truck issue has decreased, but that would be a lie. Purolator. Busses. Home tree. Skyport. Even though they have just replaced the speed bump it does not even slow them down. There is no police presence I have seen a car twice and both times it was in the A.M. >> I appreciate your assistance as the kids are outside and this is a very serious situation. I would not like to see an accident be the deciding detail that would change the minds of those decision makers of a survey. > > Regards > > Vicki >> Date: Mon, 27 May 2013 20:27:29 >> Subject: RE: Traffic issues on Connaught >>Hi Vicki, > So far I have been unable to get agreement to conduct a survey regarding street direction. > I have asked Commandant Rousseau of our local police station to work on eliminating trucks…and in some cases, I think this has worked (e.g. Montreal West street sweepers). > I will try once more, especially in light of the Turcot project. > Am copying a few people on this note, and will also send a renewal to Commandant Rousseau. >> Regards, > Susan >>Susan Clarke >> Conseillère de ville City Councillor >District Loyola District (NDG) >> Subject: RE: Traffic issues on Connaught > Date: Mon, 27 May 2013 15:42:27 -0400 >> Hello Susan >> As I was sitting here watching 6 school busses pass down the street one after another I realized that my last communication with you was in March and I never heard back in regards to street direction and traffic issues. Could you please update me on the situation. >> Regards >> Vicki >> Sent: February-26-13 4:35 PM > To: Richardson Embree > Cc: Pierre Rousseau SPVM; Yana Lukasheh > Subject: RE: Traffic issues on Connaught >> Vicki, > Better if the police check this out in the evening rush hour. I agree with you. > Changing the direction of the street is going to be complicated because we need an analysis.> I am hoping the traffic experts can find something else first… I am concerned that you will get the opposite effect mornings, especially once Turcot causes people from the West Island to get desperate. > And we also need to be sure that people on the block can get home easily too. > The speed bumps are a start. > Regards > Susan >> Susan Clarke >Conseillère de ville City Councillor > District Loyola District (NDG >> Subject: RE: Traffic issues on Connaught > Date: Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:27:53 -0500 >> Hello Susan >> Police do come by approximately once every two weeks and they come in the A.M. when there are not issues. As for causing us more issues, Brock is the other way and they do not get 1% of the traffic we do, and if I am not mistaken, that is the reason they changed their traffic direction. I appreciate your assistance in all matters >> Regards, >> Vicki >>From: Susan Clarke > Sent: February-26-13 12:18 PM > To: Richardson Embree > Cc: Pierre Rousseau SPVM; Lionel Perez; Yana Lukasheh > Subject: RE: Traffic issues on Connaught >> Hi Vicki, > No idea what happened with the email. >> Will ask our Borough people for further feedback. >> I am also going to copy our new police commandant Pierre Rousseau so he can be aware. >> I have regularly observed the issues on your block and we need to get further action without causing you worse issues. >> Regards >> Susan >> Susan Clarke >> Conseillère de ville City Councillor > District Loyola District (NDG) >> Subject: Traffic issues on Connaught > Date: Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:06:58 -0500 > > Hello Susan >> I sent this original e-mail to you on the 29th of January and have not had any response since. Could you kindly get back to me in this regards. >> Vicki >> Hello Susan >> It has been a while since we last spoke and I was wondering if any progress has been made in the consideration of reversing Connaught Avenue. The speed has not made any difference in the traffic situation. As a matter of fact some drivers see it as a challenge. I saw one gentleman slow down, reverse and then speed up to go faster over the bump… I would ask again that this matter be at the top of the list of importance as summer is only a few months away and the situation is a serious one. I would also ask that the committee reconsider changing the direction of the street to satisfy the issues we are facing on a daily basis. My 83 year old mother should not be verbally assaulted by people who are in a rush to get home, as she tries to park her car.
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9) Hello Mr. Searle,
Regarding your opinion survey, I would like to add 2 that I do not see on the list.
- Infrastructure for bicycles ie. protected bike paths: We need more of them if children are to learn to ride a bike and then ride to school instead of being driven. We need more so people of all ages can safely cycle to work, school, the store, doctor etc. Biking is a legitimate form of active transportation and cyclists should not be marginalized. Please consider this a concern that I hear from many of my friends and neighbours in our community.
- Traffic calming measures: I live on Trenholme between Sherbrooke and Somerled. The traffic coming from Sherbrooke to go north to NDG and CSL is increasing every year. And, the cars and trucks go very fast, often skipping the stop signs.
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10) Dear Mr. Searle
I read with interest your handout “Researching your opinion” Regarding your proposal to have two way traffic on deMaisonneuve, as a frequent cyclist – until felled by an accident – I cannot see how two lanes of traffic would be able to maneuver and allow the bike path to remain in place. Even if you eliminated all parking on that street, the path at present is narrow for cyclist, especially in summer before the CN crews remove overhanging branches. And as one who is presently of limited mobility, I can’t see chair
lifts in Metros. I have tried to use them in other places (notable Westmount Square and Place Bonaventure). They are clunky, slow, and use a great deal of space. In Metros they would make access for able bodied users more difficult. Perhaps ramps, such as the one in the Plamondon station might be implemented more readily. Porta toilets at Metro stations would also be somewhat problematic. If you have ever gone to a major event at Parc Jean Drapeau, where these are in use in large numbers, they can become rather disgusting, even with regular maintenance, and personally, I would rather get an undrinkable coffee at McDonalds just to use the washroom. Although I would love to see a municipal building for the NDG Food Depot, I think a better use of resources would be to renovate and use a commercial building for a greater number of community groups, such as the one at 6767 Cote des Neiges. There is an urgent need for community space. Indeed, the NDG Community Council has an ad hoc committee devoted to that need. Thank you for your concern
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11). Dear Jeremy
Thanks for asking the citizenry what we think!
(Q#1) Agree, borough should provide permanent facility for the NDG food depot.
(Q#2) Yes, the state of our roads and sidewalks is not good. In fact, some streets are so bad I avoid them. I have asked taxi drivers what the bad state of the roads costs them and they say it bites up a good deal of their income: regularly, they require new tires, new shocks, new brakes, and new tie rods. Regular car drivers are also affected, though of course not to the same degree. The roads are very bad—at least many of them–for cyclists, when there are no dedicated cycle lanes and they have to use the roads. (I’m a cyclist.) I have noticed the elderly, infirm, etc. fretting when walking along the sidewalks, fearing they will stumble and break something.
(Q#3) I think that De Maisonneuve Blvd should NOT be reconstructed to allow for two-way traffic. Whatever the borough director has said, it is not wide enough to accommodate two lanes, the two-lane bike paths, and the sidewalks. There are also an increasing number of condos along de M. and the folks who live in them often need street parking. I bike there regularly and I therefore have a very good sense of its “width.” I should add that the bike lanes here are terrible, terrible, terrible, and in many places, DANGEROUS: my bike has sometimes bounced so hard into a bike path pothole that I’ve been thrust into the traffic lane! What de M. really needs is for the road to be dug down—right down to the ground—and properly repaved by a firm that knows how to do the job to professional standards AND uses high quality materials, especially high quality asphalt. There have been road experts from other cities visiting Montreal who aver that the way the roads are built is subpar, very much so, in contrast to what is done to a high professional standard in their cities, Toronto being a very fine example.
(Q#4) Yes to porta toilets at metro stations. Some folks, particularly the “elderly,” can have a sudden need to “go.”
Again, thanks for taking this initiative.
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12). This is in response to your “Researching your Opinion” leaflet (excellent initiative).
SNOW REMOVAL:
The process of municipal snow removal has not changed for over a hundred years: Transfer the snow into trucks and transport it to snow dumps. Repeat. The City needs to “think outside the box”.
Snow can be melted in place by equipment specifficaly designed for this purpose.This exists. This is not a new or even recent process. Info and videos are available in abundance on the web. The videos by “Snow Dragon” are especially immpressive. Cities around the world are doing this including Toronto and New York.
The resulting water travels thru the Citys sewers to the water treatment plants. The standard mesure for the industry- SWE (snow water equivalent) is: 13 inches of snow produces 1 inch of water.
I have lived thru 64 Montreal winters. As a result of global warming/climate change Montreal winters are progressively milder. Winters begin later, end earlier, average temperatures are milder, and snowfalls are smaller. The equipment available could easily handle Montreal winters. This process would eliminate the need for snow dumps and the accompanying equipment and manpower.
COMBINATION SNOWBLOWER/DUMP TRUCK:
This exists!! (see you tube).This eliminates the need for a seperate dump truck to transport the snow to the snow dump, as well as the manpower.
The fuel saving would be considerable.
The Companys that sell these equipments, I am sure, would be delighted to demonstrate their merit.
Perhaps a combination of there processes would work depending on neighborhoods/street configurations.
For obvious reasons, you should not expect support for these ideas from the blue collar workers/unions. For the same reasons the evaluation of the merit/appropriateness of this equipment should not be left to the blue collar workers/unions. There initial response will be that these equipments will not work in Montreal. (on this point I will bet you acoffee at Cafe 92) They will have you beleive that the snow that falls on Montreal is different than the snow that falls on other cities. Let me know what you think.
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13). This in response to your “Researching your Opinion”.
There have been attempt(s) over the years to install RSP on Connaught Ave.
With the Montreal-West train station at the corner of the Street Connaught Ave. has become the “Parking Lot” for the trains passengers.
As an owner/resident for 29 years I can confirm that everyday Mon. to Fri. cars numerous cars park on the street between 07:00 – 09:00 with the drivers taking the trains downtown.
Myself and other residents are forced to “cruise” around looking for a parking space. Often we have to park on other streets.
The problem is aggravated during the period Apr-1 to Dec-1 (street cleaning), and again in winter during snow cleaning when the parking spaces are further limited.
The problem is further exacerbatted because these cars remain parked on the street the entire day until the drivers return around 16:00 to 18:00.
A simple parking indicator- say: Resident parking only between 09:00 -11:00. Mon to Fri. would solve the problem.
Please let me know what you think.
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14). I agree with your assumption that vehicles would use the Cavendish “link” to travel South to Sherbrooke Street and West to Elmhurst to access hi-way 20.
We have a well documented problem with vehicles using Connaught as a short cut to St-Jacques/hiway20. This would only add to the problem.
I recall that some work was done by the City with regards to linking The North part of Cavendish to Royalmount or Ferrier or Pare. to send the vehicle to Decarie. THese streets are in a heavily industrialized area and would not impact any residential areas.
Is this project still alive? I am sure you can find the work done on this in the archives.
Please let me know.
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15). I agree with you that the snow removal is well done. Perhaps TOO well done.
I have seen many, many occassions where the crews will make their first “pass” (snowplows, trucks, snowblowers) to remove snow. They then proceed to second “pass” to pick up snow left over from the first pass. In VIRTUALLY ALL of these instances this second pass is not justified because the quantity of snow remaining to be picked up is very small and would not cause any inconvenience to drivers/pedestrians if it were left in place. I have witnessed countless occasions where the snow to be picked up on the second pass is barely visible and does not merit the additional expenditure of manpower/fuel/etc. This second pass should only be AUTHORIZED on an exceptional basis following large accumulations/snowfalls. I suspect that the decision to proceed to a second pass is made by unionized workers. For obvious reasons this should NOT be the case… The savings in manpower/fuel/overtime would be substantial. The overall snow clearing operation would be completed that much quicker. The orange no parking signs would be removed that much quicker allowing vehicle to return to the street that muck quicker.
The City is always looking for ways to save money. There you go.
Please let me know what you think.
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16). Hi Jeremy,
Being a Montreal taxpayer for 30 years (Plateau, Park Extension, NDG, Pierrefonds), this is the first recollection I have of a Councillor reaching out for feedback and it is greatly appropriated. It is however troubling that you had to use your personal contact information to get the requested replies, and hope the issue gets resolved for you at city hall soon.
As for the points you requested input on, please see my comments below:
(Q#1) Snow removal. having just moved back into the city (NDG since Aug. 2013) after a 15 year exile in the west island (Pierrefonds), I am glad to say that snow removal service was excellent this past winter, and much better than what i had become accustomed to in Pierrefonds!!!!
(Q#2) Roads however seem to be the only issue that seems to need immediate attention as it puts my new car through torture daily. I do not know the are very well yet, but the two sore spots I encounter daily are Patricia Ave. between Sherbrooke and Terrebonne. This short block is not the one I live on but the next one over and is in pathetic condition with all the patchwork done on it over the years. The speed pylons added during the summer give it a truly urban slalom course feeling.
The other sore spot is St. Jacques between the Reno Depot and Westminister. I realize that part of that route is actually part of Montreal West.
(Q#3) Please NO reserved parking on our street. Never a problem finding a spot and 9 times out of 10 I park right in front of my property.
(Q#4) Food security. Great idea and would consider volunteering if needed.
(Q#5) As for sports…not really more than a couch potato myself and my two kids went through soccer and hockey programs in Pierrefonds a while back. Got rid of the van when they hung up their skates. It is great though to have good sports programs in place for the youth to stay out of trouble and to remain in shape.
(Q#6) Never use Maisonneuve boulevard and I would prefer seeing any money destined for this new artery to be allocated to repairing the state of existing roadways in the neighborhood.
(Q#7) Porta toilet would be an eye sore. A permanent solution would be much better.
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17). Bonsoir,
Pour moi, la priorité est de relier le boul Cavendish, afin d’éviter l’autoroute Décarie ou la 13, merci.
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18). Dear Jeremy Searle,
I received your brochure requesting feedback from residents. I support pretty much all of the ideas you’re putting forward, esp. the proposal to provide space for the food bank and community kitchen.
A couple of personal preferences:
-Anything that can be done to improve service on the 105 bus would be welcome.
-Dog runs: We often drive our dog all the way to Murray Park in Westmount because dog runs in NDG are generally inadequate. The closest to our home is the one at the little park at Somerled and Patricia – miniscule; couldn’t it be enlarged?
-Cavendish Extension: I had two trips to IKEA this week and it’s a terrible, congested, round-about trip. I’d welcome a short cut.
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19). Dear Mr. Searle,
Regarding your neighbourly flyer, I am not in favour of reserved residential parking, or making de Maisonneuve a two-way street, or of extending the Cavendish highway. Bendy buses are a fine idea. And in terms of improving bus routes, it would be great if we could get more frequent service on the 102.
Thank you for your survey.
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20). Thank you for your flyer requesting opinions.
- Roads: Potholes are a real nuisance and should be fixed…esp. Monkland near Beaconsfield Ave.
- SRRR: No need, thanks.
3.Metro Porta-Toilets: Good idea.
- Bikes: Montreal with its brutal, long winters should develop bike paths with great fore-sight.
- Post Office: I had mail returned because it was addressed to av. de Monkland!!! Apparently, the PO got confused due to the ‘de’! Can you correct?
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21). Thanks, Mr. Searle, for soliciting municipal constituent views on these pertinent topics. Here are mine.
SNOW REMOVAL: Fully agree that this was well done 2013-2014. Huge improvement over past winters.
ROADS & SIDEWALKS: Maintenance has improved. It would be greatly appreciated if Public Works could please fill-in a rather large pothole at 4950-4952 Prince of Wales (just down the road from me.)
MAKING DE MAISONNEUVE BLVD MORE USEFUL: The De Maisonneuve bike path is a recreation boon and well used by bikers (including BIXI users), joggers, power walkers and young couples pushing strollers or walking their tots. (I bike on it daily between West Broadway and Decarie Service near Westmount.) It could make things a little less safe if the one-way-going-west car-traffic would now involve two way car traffic ? The bike path is 80% good – asphalt patches have been laid down to repair most of the ravages of winter/spring temperatures. HOWEVER…there is a stretch between Park Row Ouest and West Broadway where the bike path is moderately to seriously rutted across the bike lanes every few feet, resulting in a bone jarring ride along that stretch. The option is to cheat and encroach onto the smoother car lane – but that’s a little risky…ANY CHANCE THIS COULD BE FIXED ?
RESERVED PARKING (SRRR): There are more cars parked on the street than before – but we’re juggling spaces OK. So no need for SRRR’s in my neck of the woods at this point.
CAVENDISH HIGHWAY EXTENSION: I can understand residents along Cavendish especially gagging over this, but I think eventually it will have to happen.
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22). Mr. Searle,
I received your pamphlet with those good thoughts to ponder. Thanks for creating this very helpful, thought-provoking document. Here are my notes:
Potholes: Can our borough please, pretty please, serve as a model for pothole repair, or even pothole triumph. Really, as bad as the pothole problem in our city may be, and I believe it’s pretty bad, I think there must be a way to do a much better job. I do my part to call in as many potholes as possible to 311. Usually, those holes are then filled within about a week, though sometimes it takes a few extra calls to get some holes filled. Maybe residents can be asked to volunteer to join crews to fill potholes? Maybe we could designate a “Report a Pothole Day” in NDG where residents can be encouraged to call potholes in to 311 (raising awareness about the 311 service for year-round use?), etc.
Roads (paving):
-Fielding between West Broadway and Coronation (in both directions) is a DISASTER. It has been this way for YEARS. Does no one who works for the roads dept. drive on this strip? Have they not noticed? This should be made a priority to repave. I have called this in to 311 several times.
-De Maisonneuve between Cavendish and West Broadway is shameful. Friends from the USA who visited were literally laughing about it in disbelief. I wish I could still laugh about it. This potential express route heading west is a hazard to vehicles. Again, it’s been like this for YEARS.
-Patricia Ave between Fielding and Sherbrooke. HORRIFIC. Drive it sometime. Enjoy!
-Monkland: Needs repaving between Grand and Harvard. Those ridiculous, useless, stylized cement cross-bands (or whatever they are actually called) that cross the road at every intersection, are shot. The snow plows and everyday traffic have wrecked them. They now serve as annoying, bouncy, suspension-rattlers. Every trip to shop on Monkland comes baked-in with the dread of traversing that terrain. Please alert the roads dept. to never use this style of paving again. WTF were they thinking? Been in this same sorry semi-destroyed condition for years too, of course.
-Somerled between Grand and Hampton. Another suspension-rattling strip that has been in awful shape for years.
Buses: Bendy buses – Try a few. See if they fit, if they cause traffic issues, if passengers like them, etc. Have an STM rep ride on the buses for a few days to interview passengers. Talk to the driver, to customers face to face. Get the STM reps out there on the buses to see if these buses are viable. They should be able to suss out a thumbs up or thumbs down in a matter of hours or days. If the busses seem to work, then bring on a few more onto the route.
Cavendish overpass: This will cost a fortune, but would certainly help ease Decarie congestion. Is it worth it? Anybody’s guess. Studying it (yet again) would likely cost a few million dollars. Worth it? Who knows. If nothing else, it would make getting to IKEA and the airport a breeze. It would also serve as an added ‘escape route’ for NDG and CSL residents in case a need arises, god forbid.
Snow removal: The amount of fuel wasted and emitted during a storm cleanup is nuts. I have seen the plows making repeated trips up and down and up and down and up and down my block (and all blocks) over and over again. Piling the snow up ‘just so’, etc. The cleanup does not need to be perfect (and it never is anyhow). Just get 90% of the snow cleared (in two-thirds the time, using a quarter the fuel) and everyone will be happier and breathe easier. Millions can be saved. Tell the crews to stop using so much gas driving plows back and forth up our streets. It’s shameful. We should be a world leader in snow removal efficiency.
I love NDG, I respect what you are doing, I hope I have not come across as a ranting citizen. I’m actually a very friendly guy. I’m not yelling here, I’m just frustrated to see awful streets unpaved for years and years and my calls to 311 have not gone answered re: repaving certain crucial strips. Your pamphlet was a great idea to help citizens express themselves to you directly. Hopefully you can help implement our concerns and suggestions.
Thanks, Jeremy. Feel free to call for more details if needed. Happy to drive you around to show you the problem areas in person. I have contacts at CBC and would be pleased to invite them along too to show that you are serving as an attentive councillor on the roads issue.
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23). Dear M. Searle,
I’ve received the pamphlet and I take the opportunity to let you know that there is a problem – a very important one – that you’ve not addressed. A few years ago I started to use a wood box – supplied by Eco Quartier – to put away my kitchen food waste. I soon realized that it didn’t work, but there were no alternatives, so I went on doing that, with all the problems that it caused.
I know that in other parts of Montreal – for instance in the City of Westmount – people receive containers (like the one to collect paper) that are collected one’s a week. I would appreciate very much if you could obtain the same service for our borough.
I am sure that you will take into consideration my request.
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24). The proposed extension would create an intolerable traffic situation because Cavendish is already congested with traffic as it forms the main artery connecting several smaller streets where thousands of residence live! The increased congestion would result in more accidents and would create danger for children travelling to and from school! A suggestion would be why not go through Westminister where there would be less high rises and less disruption for the elderly crossing the street or children going to school and would be an easier access to St. Laurent. Like the idea of making de Maisonneue a two way street. Good idea! Like the idea of washrooms in Metros,
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25). Mr. Searle,
Received your ‘Researching your opinion’ notice in the mail. Thanks in advance for entertaining this good idea of receiving feedback on these subjects. Below my comments on two topics of interest to me.
ROADS AND SIDEWALKS:
We absolutely have the worst roads in Montreal. They are downright terrible.
Some main NDG roads are completely beat up, notably Cote-St-Luc, Sommerled and Notre-Dame-de-Grace.
We clearly need alot of work put into our road infrastructure… and quickly.
(for good order I am on Borden, between Fielding and Chester)
CAVENDISH HIGHWAY EXTENSION:
I would be in favour of seeing this project return to the table for possible implementation.
Indeed traffic flow may increase through our NDG borough as a result of West Island commuters avoiding the Decarie congestion, however, the Decarie expressway is a 24/7 stop and go so a Cavendish extension would also benefit NDG residents from dealing with the headache of the Decarie mess.
It would be another viable main artery option… further spreading out traffic flow vs. seeing it congest further.
Thank you for your time and consideration of your NDG residents voice.
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26). Mr. Searle:
Most items listed do not concern me, however, there is definitely a need for dog runs and substantially larger than the one on Somerled and Patricia. That’s hardly a ‘run’. Also, most of the dogs hate the pebbles. Just put in grass and let it turn to weeds like everywhere else.
I had tried to reach you in the spring to no avail.
Westmore between Terrebonne and Somerled is one of the very few blocks in NDG that does not have some sort of speed deterrent on it. I believe when the City was installing all those speed “poles”, that block in Westmore was being paved and so was forgotten about.
Also, the school on Terrebonne, between West Broadway and Westmore – I have no problem with the school or the kids, but the mess around the outside of the fence (which I believe is City property) is disgusting. Everyone uses the area as a garbage pail and it get mowed and cleaned up maybe twice a summer. In the winter it looks like a pig sty. Also, there is a dumpster on Westmore which is suppose to be for school use. It is often overflowing with garbage and I know for a fact that some of the residents are using it as their own personal garbage pail. I have lived here for 37 years and this is my first year seeing a rat.
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27). Jeremey
I used to use the Royal vale field, until recently when they locked it up. I am a responsible dog owner meaning I pick up the poop, not only my dogs, but at times others.
I pay taxes and feel that having that area closed off is pity, it’s a great space for everyone. If we could somehow share that field this would be wonderful.
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28). 1- Snow removal on sidewalks was greatly improved this year. Pedestrians didn’t have to walk on the street following a heavy snowfall.
2- I am disappointed with the dog run in Trenholme Park . Despite the sign at the gate that says dog owners should control dog barking, there are always a few dogs that bark non stop. The owners should be given warnings, after which fines should be levied.
3- Chairlifts in Metro stations: great. Those of us whose legs are getting weak could use a lift.
4- Cavendish extension should only be extended to Royal Mount Ave, which should ease the congestion around the Decarie traffic circle. I’d hate to see all that traffic coming down to the Sherbrooke street intersection. Traffic there is bad enough, where drivers speed through it to beat the red light. Its an intersection that could use photo radar. Unfortunately, there are far to many drivers who are always in a hurry to get somewhere, the cause many accidents.
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29). Monsieur le conseiller de district
Sur votre brochure reçue aujourd’hui, vous de mandez notre opinion sur notre district. J’ai donc deux sujets que je trouve prioritaire :
- La bonne administration de notre argent;
- Le bon flux de circulation automobile;
- La livraison du courrier à domicile.
La bonne administration de nos sous. Je pense que le sujet parle de lui-même avec tous les scandales derniers.
Pour une bonne circulation. Le fait de connecter Cavendish à la 40 donnera un meilleur flux et sera bon pour le commerce de NDG.
De plus certains feux de circulation sont primordiaux pour la circulation automobile. Ceux-ci devraient priorise la circulation automobile durant les heures de grande circulation. Par exemple, tous les feux le long de Décarie.
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30). Bonjour M. Searle,
Nous avons reçu votre publicité A la recherche de votre opinion où est mentionné Stationnement réservé aux résidents. Effectivement, nous avons un problème sur la rue Walkley entre Sherbrooke et Monkland. >Sur Sherbrooke, Ils ont fait des voies réservées pour le transport en commun de 15h30 à 18h30, c’est qui est très bien pour la circulation et les usagers du transport. Cependant, sur Sherbrooke, entre Cavendish et Walkley, il y a un centre Énergie Cardio. Alors, lorsque nous arrivons de travailler avec nos autos, nous n’avons aucune place de stationnement. Je suis allée au bureau de l’arrondissement Côte des Neiges/ Notre Dame de Grâce et ils m’ont mentionné que je devais faire une pétition ensuite des inspecteurs viendraient vérifier plusieurs fois et que ça prendrait au moins un an. Nous ne nous voyons pas cet hiver être obligés de nous stationner sur Monkland comme nous le faisons présentement ou de passer trois à quatre fois sur notre rue jusqu’à ce que quelqu’un part. Nous sommes prêts à débourser des frais de permis annuels. Nous sommes déjà 3 à vouloir un permis.
Espérant une réponse de votre part, je vous remercie de votre collaboration
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31). Hello Mr. Searle,
Thank you very much for your communication asking for opinions.
I have several opinions that I would appreciate your taking into account in discussions regarding the city.
- I would like to see more public toilets in general. This is a basic human need and we should be taking it into account when public places are built or maintained. I would prefer that they were more sanitary than porta toilets.
- I am in favour of the Cavendish highway extension. The long and tortuous drive to route 40 and points north and west would be much reduced.
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32). Dear Mr. Searle,
In response to your recent request for comments on:
Cavendish Blvd extension: I am for the extension but with the following recommendation.
Built as a boulevard like Rockland in TMR with max 40 kph and synchronized lights. It will alleviate Decarie Blvd and this way will also be safer for pedestrians. As it will be several years before this will be completed, I have the following comments: Unlike what the City of Mtl claims, Cavendish has three lanes on each side from St Jacques to Cote St Luc Rd; not two. Drivers going south wanting to turn onto Sherbrooke West take a lane and a half and slow traffic during morning rush hour. If lines would be painted like on Cavendish going north at Sherbrooke. The same for Cavendish going north at Monkland, at Terrebonne, and at Somerled; all because there are no painted lines and drivers turning right take one and a half lanes. Cavendish between Monkland and Terrebonne is curved and the middle.should have a solid painted line in the middle.
Roads & Sidewalks: Somerled Ave between Grand and Borden is in terrible shape. Of course I don’t suggest repaving it until all underground utilities be repaired or replaced. Walk (on the sidewalk) and look at all the cracks on the road. They should be filled with a machine that applies asphalt caulking, as had been done many years ago on my street, Borden Ave., at least until the street is redone.
Sidewalks on my street as well as on other streets are poorly maintained.
Two suggestions: When a sidewalk has been broken up because of a water main repair, don’t patch it with asphalt, only to have to dig it up and pore concrete; double work and more costly (and it is City crews that should be doing the concrete work, not private contractors). [Secondly] wood spacers should never be placed between new and old sidewalk sections: the wood absorbs water and also deteriorated allowing freeze thaw cycles to damage the sidewalk. Other municipalities use material that has an asphalt base.
Pedestrian safety: Drivers and pedestrians, both, don’t follow the basic rules of right-of-way and courtesy. Besides drivers turning who don’t yield to pedestrians, I notice many pedestrians who, as soon as the light turns green, they rush across without looking right or left. It is really a pity that the Police don’t apply these basic laws regularly instead of conducting occasional “campaigns”. And if they would regularly drive slower, they would observe more; use more bicycles.
Snow removal: I live on Borden between Somerled and Fielding. It is one-way north.
When a snow storm hits, this is how they clean our street: They drive north plowing the snow to the right, most of the time. Most drivers park on the left side to avoid being snowed in. But when it comes to cleaning, they put signs to clean the left side first. How ridiculous!
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33). Here are opinions about some issues mentioned in your flyer:
Snow removal – our side of the street is always done after the other side – why can the operator not vary the side which comes first? (we’re on Patricia.)
Roads and Sidewalks – our sidewalks are being done, good. Now the roads in the area also need repaving.
Community gardens – could the median on Fielding be used? Any space allotted would need water, fencing, supervision – would those using these gardens be able to pay?
Maisonneuve Blvd. may be wide enough for 2 lanes of traffic – plus bicycle path – but there would be no lane for parking. If more buses were also to use Maisonneuve Blvd. they should run east-west only.
105 and 102 “Express” buses on Maisonneuve – turning north on Girouard would serve mainly to avoid the intersection and lights for getting onto the 15 expressway. On the other hand, Grand is too residential a street for buses. Turning north on Cavendish, and then west onto Sherbrooke, would make Cavendish Blvd. more difficult for that one block.
Porta-toilets at Metros – helpful but expensive to keep clean and available (think drug-users, sick patients).
Chairlifts at metro stations – probably helpful but take a long time to install and would probably need an employee to help passengers and maintain (cleanliness and safety).
Cavendish Blvd. extension – am for it, but don’t live nearby and life here would not be disrupted during the building of the extension, nor by extra traffic using it on its completion.
My suggestion for saving money – garbage collection only once a week – as done in Toronto, for example. I know, I know, the unions need their members to have that job.
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34) Bonjour M. Searle,
Je suis ravie de cette initiative pour obtenir l’opinion de vos citoyens et c’est avec plaisir que vous trouverz ci-dessous la réponse aux différents sujets présentés.
Routes et Trottoirs: rue Somerled à refaire entre Cavendish et Côte St-Luc rue Terrebonne .
Stationnement réservé aux résidents: J’habite sur la rue Madison (coin Biermans) à coté du Parc Confédération et il y a énormément de traffic à cause des installations sportives et de la salle des témoins de Jéhovah.
Je recommande que des permis soient obligatoires pour cette zone ou des heures de stationnement restreintes permises. cela est très dérangeant pour les résidents toute cette circulation. Parcs à chiens: au contraire, je ne recommande pas plus de parcs à chiens mais un meilleur respect de la réglementation (+ inspecteurs de la ville ou la police) à l’effet que les chiens doivent être tenus en laisse à Montréal. Trop de propriétaires laissent leurs chiens libres et cela fait 2 fois que je me fais attaqués par des chiens (1 fois au parc NDG alors que j’Étais en vélo et 1 fois avec ma fille alors que je jouais au ballon dans le parc!) Qui veille à faire respecter la réglementation ???
Sports et loisirs: Je recommande que l’on rétablisse l’horaire des bibliothèques ouvertes 7 jours et même que l’on allonge les heures d’ouverture. il faut donner un plus grand accès à la culture et à la lecture à nos jeunes si l’on veut contrer le décrochage scolaire !!! C’est inadmissible. Je suis allée au Chili et les bibliothèques sont ouvertes jusqu’à minuit. Je n’ai jamais vu autant de jeunes dans ces lieux; ils ne sont pas en train de commettre des crimes et traînés aux abords des stations de métro. Il faut rendre ces lieux intéressants.
Je suggère également de devancer la date d’ouverture des piscines municipales et la date de fin de saison. Lundi le 25 août, il faisait 30 degrés et la piscine était fermé alors que l’école primaire/secondaire débute seulement le 27 août. J’ai vu plusieurs personnes défilées et se frappés le nez à une installation fermée. quel dommage…
Serait-il ppossible d’améliorer l’offre de service du centre communautaire etr sportif Monkland / NDG, en offrant plus de cours pour les touts-petits et des cours plus intéressants entre autre, des cours de danses pour les 4 à 6 ans les weeks-ends ? Des cours d’art dans la nouvelle bibliothèque Benny ?
Il serait intéressant d’avoir un parc d’amusement intérieur dans l’arrondissement. il pourrait être situé à l’ancien cinéma Impress sur Sherbrooke. dans le même genre que Zukari à Ste-Julie (voir lien http://www.zukari.ca) Toilettes portatives dans les stations de métro: je suis d’accord que l’on installe cela dans les stations les plus achalandées Berri-UQAM, McGill, Peel, Longueuil. etc.)
Remontées mécaniques dans les stations de métro : pourquoi autant de changement, les handicapés ont déjà un service de transport adapté et des taxis adaptés pourquoi faire supporter des coûts supplémentaires aux usagers pour des gens qui n’utiliseront même pas ces services ??? j’ai vu 1X une personne en chaise roulante d’al’autobus depuis que les modèles ont été changé et que l’on a enlevé l;e quart des places dans les autobus !
Voie réservée Autobus sur Sherbrooke : L’introduction d’une voie réservée sur Sherbrooke est une idée formidable qui doit réduire les délais et inciter à l’utilisation du transport collectif. Malheureusement, je passe à cet endroit tous les jours, matins et soirs aux heures réservées et chque jour, il y a des voitures garées dans cette voie aux heures interdites et des automobilistes qui y corculent malgré que cela est interdit. Il devrait y avoir plus de surveillance policière afin que cela soit efficace.
Amélioration des lignes d’autobus : Il faudrait surtout augmenté la fréquence des passages de la ligne 102 (aux 15-20 minutes) plutot que les 30 minutes actuels.
Prolongement de Cavendish : cela est insensé, cela va augmenter le flot de véhicules et aussi de véhicules lourds dans un quartier fortement résidentiel. Il y a une école à moins de 3 coins de rue et beaucoup d’enfants viennent à pied ou en autobus scolaire ce qui bloquent la circulation lors du dépôt des enfants. Cela va entraîner une congestion dans le secteur et augmenter les risques d’accident. En plus de contribuer à la dégradation (déjà importante) de cette artère principale du quartier ce l’on augemente le significativement le nombre de véhicules/jour. je m’oppose farouchement au projet.
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35). Hello Mr. Searle:
Thanks for inquiring. We live on Mayfair below Sherbrooke.
Neither of us thinks it would be a good idea to make de Maisonneuve a two-way street. It really isn’t wide enough to be comfortable. Reminds me of crossing Victoria Bridge when it was 2 ways on one side in the 50s.
We were fine with the snow removal last year and appreciate the paving of Mayfair this spring which was done efficiently. The workmen were very approachable and helpful.
Both of us strongly support a permanent home for the Depot and for a kitchen. I hope places can be found for community gardens–maybe around the sports centre?
The main issues about pedestrian safety seem to me to be cracks in the sidewalk and people on bicycles who ride on the sidewalk.
Porta toilets at metros do seem a good idea for an aging population. How about trying it out at, say, Vendome for a few months and see how it works. It might be hard to find an area that has a slight degree of privacy but that’s where it/they should be.
Chair lifts: again, why not try one maybe at Villa Maria where I often see people having trouble when an escalator isn’t working.
The 105 bus: why not some bendy buses at least at rush hour. Not so necessary at other times.
The Cavendish extension: yes and no–it could make a huge increase in traffic along Cavendish and be very detrimental to the area around that street. What would happen to house prices? But yes to convenience and decreasing traffic on Decarie.
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36). Dear Mr. Searle,
I would like to take an opportunity and respond to your request for the opinion of the citizens of NDG.
In order to keep this email brief, please allow me to address only certain issues. I do not want to give the impression that the other issues are not important, just that addressing all of them will make this email unreadable.
Reserved Residential Parking (applies to our street only): No; I live on Belmore, behind Concordia University. Part of the street has reserved parking section, but not the section on which I reside. The houses on this section of Belmore all have driveways and therefore already have a reserved space. Even though students and staff from Concordia regularly park in the street, I disagree with having to buy a permit to park in front of my house.
De Maisonneuve Blvd: No; Making de Maisonneuve a 2 way street would be a mistake, particularly if you maintain the bike path. Presently, garbage trucks turning in from the side streets have difficulty manoeuvring even when there are no parked cars on that section of de Maisonneuve. Having 2 lanes plus a bike path will make the driving lanes too narrow resulting in very slow traffic and make it even more dangerous for cyclists when they try to turn onto the side streets. NGD ave is already a wide east-only artery that can easily accommodate 2 lanes of traffic. Please keep de Maisonneuve West only.
Toilets in Metros: No; I have been travelling by metro since a child in the 70s. There has never been a toilet in the metro and everybody has always planned accordingly. Considering the bullying and security problems at some stations like Villa Maria, I think that the last thing we need is small, enclosed, lockable places. Metro stations are already difficult to keep clean and odorless in the summertime, why add to it?
Decarie Tunnel: Yes; but Easily connected? Wouldn’t the cost be huge? I agree that help is needed for those sections of highway.
105 West on de Maisonneuve: Maybe, but only if it turns on Benny or Cavendish, the other streets are too narrow, especially with parked cars.
Cavendish extension: No; Again, the cost would be huge and the extra traffic will ruin the neighborhood and make it more dangerous. NDG currently has enough traffic problems in the morning and evening, especially since the highway 720 east entrance off St-Jacques is gone and everybody uses the Cote St-Luc entrance.
Roads and sidewalks: Sommerled and deMaisonneuve are in serious need of repaving, not just pothole filling.
Other: Graffiti and tagging is still a serious problem in the neighborhood, with many residential homes being vandalized repeatedly. Fines, if any, are obviously not sufficient of a deterrent. Why is so little done to stop this? I have been seriously considering moving out of the neighborhood because it is starting to look run down.
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37). Dear Representative Searle, I like that you sent a newsletter asking for input, this is a great way to find out what is on the minds of your constituents. Regarding roadwork, I see two priorities in NDG. First there is the issue of repaving. I think focus should be given on higher-traffic streets in poor repair, ESPECIALLY Ave Notre Dame de Grace and Chemin de la Cote St. Antoine. Except for some parts between Decarie and either Girouard or Wilson, which were re-paved relatively recently, these streets are in TERRIBLE condition. Some patch work on NDG helped a little, but it really needs a proper re-paving. The very worst is Cote st Antoine between Clermont and Decarie, which is an embarassment to the city. I would say nothing west of Melrose really needs reserved residential parking. I can understand how people living near Monkland Village could be interested in that, though. Regarding pedestrian safety, I think there have been some nice improvements recently. But in one or two places I think they have gone overboard. Eastbound traffic on Cote St. Antoine is meeting a major bottleneck at Girouard. The changes to the light system has reduced the time the light is green. And now totally unnecessary, in-street blockages have been erected to turn it from 3 lanes (L, Straight, R) to two. When one person wants to turn each way and pedestrians have not cleared the crosswalks, the street backs up completely. This would be easy to fix but undoing the obstructions in the street and clearly marking lanes (one each L, Straight, R). Regarding changes to traffic on de Maisonneuve. I assume it could only be made 2-way west of Decarie at the expense of parking? If a study shows that there is enough parking on the side streets, this could make good sense. It might also be time to repave there. And I am disappointed that no solution has been found for cyclists trying to use the path and cross Decarie. This remains complex and dangerous and one of the main things keeping people from bike commuting downtown. Regarding buses, another thing to consider is an express 103 bus, with a first stop at Grand, and a local which only goes to Grand. For people who use the bus from further away, it is a major delay to deal with the traffic and stops in Monkland Village. I personally think connecting the two parts of Cavendish would be a great idea. It is bizarre that they are not connected. Getting in and out of NDG has become increasingly difficult, and the more ways we have to get around the Turcotte and the intersections which will be affected by work there, the better. Finally, regarding snow removal, I think 2013-14 went much better than 2012-13. In particular, removal was better prioritized. It is important to make a priority of clearing the streets with bus service (Monkland is often cleared far too late). Side streets, such as my street, should not be an early priority. When it comes to side streets, I think the priority should be to get one side of each street — so that people can park — before going back and doing a second side on any smaller streets. In some cases both sides of one small street were clear before either side of another was clear.
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38). Bonjour,
J’ai reçu votre dépliant pour les suggestions d’opinion:
Je suggère:
Refaire/ou améliorer les terrains de soccer au Parc Loyola. Il y a des trous/bosses partout est c’est fort dangereux pour les blessures de nos enfants.
Refaire le trottoir (petit chemin) qui fait le tour du parc Loyola. Il y a des trous / bosses partout.
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39). Hello,
First of all I like to thank you for circulating the “Researching your opinion”, It is a very informative. I know we have the net but this one is direct and I urge everyone to read it.
I have a concern. It is the corner of Bessborough Ave and Somerled. If you are driving from Bessborough and coming to Somerled stop sign, in order to turn left in Somerled, you have to move forward to almost the middle of Somerled (not good for pedestrians) to see incoming traffic, because their are cars parked all the way to Bessborough infront of the restaurant in the corner. Somerled coming from Borden the street is curved and impossible to see incoming cars, and no stop sign in Somerled it is just in Bessbourough. It is really difficult and dangerous to turn left in this corner for pedestrians also.
I suggest that their should be no parking sign at the corner of Bessborough and Somerled (north side of Somerled), this way it is a bit easier to see incoming traffic, or have a 4 way stop sign.
Please see this problem before someone gets a bad accident.
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40). Good day Jeremy,
I appreciate your gesture of soliciting insights and opinions from your neighborhood.
May I suggest that you look into the little park located at the corner of West Hill and Kensington? The slide and the clubhouse is just not appropriate for smaller kids so around us all here has to go to Benny park for that reason. The one at Benny Park is simple but perfect.
I know that we can’t have the same water works at Benny’s but we could use some more green grass and some mature trees around the sand box for shades.
Also, there should be more speed limit precaution signs esp on Summer time as it is becoming an alarming intersection.
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41). Hello Mr. Searle et al,
I am sending you this email in response to your recent newsletter, requesting feedback. I am strongly opinionated on most issues in our city and pleased to have the opportunity to voice my opinions on a few of them.
Regarding snow removal, I have a few issues, mostly with the habits of some local residents. Like many, I live on a one-way street. I am on the right side of this street, (if you’re proceeding along it properly). I’ve observed that several of my neighbours themselves as well as some snow removal contractors put snow in the middle of the road, to be ploughed by city ploughs further up the road, and inevitably in front of my driveway. I would like to see some hefty fines levied on these companies and individuals. More money for city coffers must sound good to someone. At the very least, invest in snow ploughs that can plough to the left 50% of the time.
Naturally, I feel that my street and its sidewalks are in extreme disrepair (as are most), but I believe that if it were repaired, I would end up with more traffic at higher speeds than we already have. Basically the terrible roads are a traffic calming solution.
I reside in between Chester and Cote-St-Luc Road, and of course parking is an issue. This issue is compounded by the City of Cote-St-Luc’s overnight parking abolition. Because residents of Cote-St-Luc cannot park their cars in their own borough, they park in NDG overnight. I’ve even seen people drop off one car in front of my house, and get in another to drive home to Cote-St-Luc (where I guess they have room for that car). Additionally, some residences on my street have more cars than licensed drivers, and since many have apartments, a lot of cars are parked. One of my neighbours has at least six cars regularly taking parking on the street, whereas their frontage could only supply room enough for one (if they didn’t have a fire hydrant there). Another neighbour, who owns his own construction company, regularly puts construction cones on the street in front of his house to reserve his family’s parking spaces. I believe that extreme users like this should pay more. I think it would be fair to provide each building/property owner annual parking permits equal to the amount of frontage that their building provides. Since this would not be necessary if Cote-St-Luc residents were not parking here, I believe the City of Cote-St-Luc should cover the costs with their own taxes.
I am not a pet owner, and am frequently disturbed by barking dogs. One neighbour’s dogs bark constantly when outdoors, and the owners make no effort to silence them. When the dogs are left indoors and unattended, they bark at every movement on the street through open windows. I cannot garden in my front yard without listening to the constant shrill yip of two terriers. Furthermore, I find that dog owners do not leash their animals in public spaces, and have been bitten on the sidewalk. While teaching my daughter to ride a bicycle at a local public track yesterday, a young man was running with his pit bull around the track, leaving up to 100 feet in between himself and the dog. This same park (Confederation Park) has a dog run already. I believe this is criminal. Additionally, I do not like finding pet feces on my lawn. Pet owners in my area also seem to let their cats roam freely. As someone with pet allergies, I do not enjoy finding cats lounging on my patio furniture in my backyard.
Police activity/inactivity is a major concern of mine. As I just mentioned, Confederation Park, which is only one block from a police station billows clouds of marijuana smoke from the bleachers every evening. Personally, I don’t care if someone smokes marijuana in their own home, but when my child must inhale the smoke (or stop breathing) to learn how to ride a bike in a public park ONE BLOCK FROM THE POLICE STATION, I must ask “What good are they?” I also find general police behaviour to be reprehensible. They appear to spend all their time bullying innocent people, sticking graffiti on city owned vehicles, bellyaching about how tough they have it in the public sector with their huge pensions, and just generally bringing the administration of justice into disrepute.
City buses are perhaps the biggest hazard to anyone on or near a street (with the exception of snow removal trucks). I’ve witnessed a city bus taking up three lanes on Cote-St-Luc road. I’ve come within millimeters of being struck by buses, while on the sidewalk, and while driving my car. The majority of bus drivers need re-education, stricter licensing, monitoring, and termination as required. Sharing the road is a problem among many drivers, but it is especially dangerous when that person is driving an enormous vehicle like a city bus. I do not believe the current group of bus drivers can be trusted with articulated buses.
I am 100% against a Cavendish Street extension. Fix the Decarie, fix the 40, fix the roads that are already there, before polluting more neighbourhoods with more noise, and more pollution, and more ill planned traffic extensions. Montreal’s solution to traffic problems always seems to be: “Let’s make it more difficult for people to do, and maybe less of them will do it.” I would really like to see this attitude change to “Let’s make it all easier for everyone, do it right, and then we won’t have a problem.”
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42). Jeremy,
In response to your flyer I received today I would like to comment on two items in particular.
- The Cavendish Highway Extension. As a resident on Prince-of-Wales Avenue (adjacent Cavendish), this is a major concern. This is an extremely poor idea. NDG is a family neighbourhood and already suffers from traffic congestion / aggressive drivers. Prince-of-Wales in particular is currently well-used by rushed motorists as a “short-cut” to Cavendish. Apart from Cavendish becoming a de-facto Highway (very dangerous), I have no doubt that Prince-of-Wales would turn into a secondary highway for those looking to “avoid the lights” and race from the TransCanada to 20/720. Also, I am almost certain that the de-merged boroughs (i.e. Cote St-Luc, Hampstead, Montreal West), will alter traffic patterns (i.e blocking roads and restricting access at certain times of day) in order to discourage abuse by non-residents and push traffic incrementally into NDG. This is a horrible outcome for NDG residents.
- Pedestrian Safety. Motorists in NDG are extremely aggressive. Traffic rules are ignored by many and if you actually obey them (like me unfortunately) you get honked and high-beamed. We need more police presence to catch offenders or deter this behaviour, in particular around rush hour. This does not need to be every-day. People will learn after getting tickets and seeing increased police in the area. In particular, in reference to my residency on Prince-of-Wales, if police were to position themselves on this street (40 speed limit) in the morning and evening during rush hour they will catch speeders.
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43). Hi Jeremy,
I received your newsletter “Researching your opinion” last week, and I wanted to make a few comments.
Re de Maisonneuve Blvd (west of Decarie): Making this a two-way would prove very challenging; keep in mind a two-way might grind to a halt in winter. Rather than trying to do the impossible, Improving traffic flow on Sherbrooke street should be a priority. This can be done by better synchro of signals and returning it to a six lane blvd. It has now been painted into a four lane blvd with the new reserved bus lanes. The segment between Girouard and the Decarie overpass (Addington and the east side intersection) has become a road block because the overpass signals are out of sync with Girouard. All three intersections are on 80 sec cycles and should turn green together. This small correction would move thousands of cars a day more efficiently and cut GHG emissions!
Re Porta toilets at Metro stations: For sure. In fact, the STM should spend the big bucks and have real toilets for its paying public! Water fountains are not a bad idea either.
Re the 102: An Express bus to Somerled is a great idea. I would also recommend a new bus stop at Chester and Patricia (NW corner) to improve access to the route. People on Connaught, Trenholme, Patricia, and even those in Montreal West, would benefit from this.
Re Roads: Winter potholes should all be filled by May 15?!
Re Cavendish extension: It will definitely make NDG busier and noisier but sounds like a done deal. Should not be a truck route.
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44). Dear Mr. Searle,
Thank you for soliciting our opinions.
The 105 East from Elmhurst to Vendome: By the time this bus gets to Grand it is often full. If bendy buses are not used, would it be possible for some buses to start their route around Grand or Cavendish so that people going to Vendome can have a seat?
Cleanliness: Lack of cleanliness, particularly at Sherbrooke and Patricia where garbage from the apartment building on the north west corrner is often strewn about..
Cyclists disobeying traffic rules: I rarely see cyclists stop at a stop sign at intersections.
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45). Bonjour monsieur Searle,
Premièrement, merci avoir transmis information pour qu’on puisse savoir comment donner nos opinions.
En général, je pense tout est bien organiser, j’ai seulement quelque remarque sur les services de mon arrondissement:
– Parcs à chiens: j’habite sur la rue Kensington, entre Terrebonne et Monkland, juste à côté le parc Willaim-Hurst, on remarque toujours que les propriétaires des chiens laissent toujours leurs chiens à courir sans attaché même si les panneaux sont installées à rentré du parc. Moi, j’ai 2 petit enfants et j’ai peur d’aller sur ce parc en les laissant couraient trop loin de moi. Je ne veux pas qu’on arrive un accident qu’avant qu’on réagit sur le problème.
– Enlèvement de la neige: la vitesse des petites machines à déneigement sur les trottoirs, je suis sûre premièrement qu’ils ne respectent pas la limite de vitesse, même si les panneaux indique 30 km dans la zone des parcs. Quand j’ai dis je suis sûre, car je vois à chaque année les dégages qu’ils font sur ma boîte de pierre chaque année. Je vais mettre une poteau coloriée cette année. Mais la vitesse reste toujours une problème.
– Optimisation du boul. Maisonneuve: Oui, c’est enfer la circulation à NDG et c’est une bonne idée de la faire en double sens, si on peut réparer l’asphalte aussi. État de la rue entre Décarie à boul. Grand est très mauvaise.
– Prolongation de Cavendish: je suis pour idée, surtout hôpital qui va ouvrir bientôt et reconstruction de Turcot, la circulation à NDG sera encore pire qu’aujourd’hui! Si les gens ont autre option qu’à aller sur Décarie et passer par Cavendish pour aller sur les autres autoroutes, ça va améliorer la situation de la circulation à court terme et à long terme.
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46). Cher Monsieur,
Merci de nous permettre de nous exprimer. C’est vraiment apprécié. J’ai deux petits commentaires sur les enjeux que vous décrivez:
Le tunnel Décarie: je n’ai absolument pas compris ce qui est suggéré. Confusion entre la rue Décarie et l’autoroute Décarie.
Prolongement de Cavendish : Je suis tout à fait d’accord avec ce projet qui traîne en longueur non pas à cause d’un «quartier populaire qui tente de dissuader la circulation de transit». A ma connaissance, c’est l’arrondissement ou la ville de Côte-Saint-Luc qui s’y opposait et il ne s’agit pas là d’un quartier populaire.Votre commentaire était un peu méprisant pour les vrais quartiers populaires. Vouliez-vous parler de Côte-des-Neiges, un vrai quartier populaire ?
Mes suggestions:
Routes et trottoirs : Installer des dos d’âne sur la rue Kensington au niveau du parc, au coin de Terrebonne.
Il y a plusieurs dos d’âne ailleurs à NDG et je me demande pourquoi ? Ici, il s’agit d’un parc où jouent les enfants et il faut voir la circulation, le matin surtout, tout cela pour éviter Grand Boulevard ; plusieurs automobilistes filent à toute vitesse sans que jamais un policier les interpelle. Et les policiers, ils sont invisibles, on ne les voit nulle part sauf pour donner des contraventions de stationnement. Stationnée une auto illégalement ne tue ou ne blesse personne. Ce n’est pas normal qu’un parc ne soit pas protégé des fous de la route et ça exige un redressement.
L’autobus articulé sur la ligne 105. Super proposition, mais il faudrait améliorer le virage de Décarie/Sherbrooke, une vraie farce, car il arrive que les autobus ne peuvent même pas tourner sur Sherbrooke. C’est toujours plein de circulation. L’hiver, c’est l’enfer. Les chauffeurs sont bien patients. A quand des priorités pour le transport en commun ? Tout le monde en parle, mais les actions se font toujours attendre.
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47). Bonsoir monsieur Searle, Mardi soir j’ai fais une intervention à la séance du conseil d’arrondissement à propos des graffitis sur le complexe Benny Farm. On m’a dit que je peux porter plainte, ce que je vais probablement faire, mais je sais que les policiers vont me dire que si ce n’est pas sur ma propriété, j’ai peu de chance que ça soit enregistré parce que pour faire enlever un graffiti par la ville, le propriétaire de l’immeuble doit remplir un formulaire pour donner la permission. Il y a plusieurs graffitis ici et là autour du complexe Benny Farm. Ils sont l’oeuvre d’un jeune qui vit quelque part sur le complexe parce que les graffitis signés Def sont surtout sur les murs du complexe depuis plus de deux ans, parfois il s’en rajoute un ou deux. J’ai soulevé ce problème aux réunion de copropriété du syndicat horizontal Benny Farm. Ni le gestionnaire Ges-Mar Inc. ni le SDC ne veut contacter les syndicats fautifs pour qu’ils fassent enlever les graffitis sur leurs immeubles. je ne comprends pas pourquoi, c’est pourtant simple à faire. Malheureusement je n’ai pas les coordonnées de ces syndicats. Entre temps Benny Farm commence à prendre des allures de gettho. Il est possible de fournir les adresses où se trouve les graffitis, mais pas les noms des syndicats. De votre côté serait-il possible de contribuer à la prise en charge de ce problème? Je vous signale que j’ai voté pour vous et qu’avec mon ex-conjointe on avait supporté il y a quelques années votre campagne électorale et votre projet du centre sportif. Merci pour cette belle réussite.
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48). Here are my suggestions in response to your opinion poll. It’s a great idea.
ROADS: The roads in my neighborhood are indescribable. Here are JUST A FEW of the worst:
Fielding going west from Coronation to West Broadway
Terrebonne going east between Cavendish and Girouard
Terrebonne west between Grand and Cavendish
Oxford south between Terrebonne and Monklands
Chester east between West Broadway and Cavendish
Chester west between Cavendish and West Broadway excluding a block around Belmont (or a street named something like that)
DOG RUNS: I sometimes think my front lawn is a dog run. There are orange urine spots everywhere. Dog owners don’t seem to understand that the urine penetrates way down into the soil and is almost impossible to eliminate for YEARS. They also are most hostile to being informed of this. More dog runs – definitely – PLUS more information on what happens when dogs urinate all over lawns and how overtime homeowners give up and yards IN DOG OWNER NEIGHBORHOODS begin to go down hill.
BUS 105: Vendome to Elmhurst. Good idea to split it.
IMPROVING BUS ROUTES: I so appreciate the 10 minute run of BUS 51. DON’t CHANGE IT. It’s almost always jammed.
CAVENDISH EXTENSION: Put it off as long as possible.
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49). Dear Mr. Searle,
Thank-you for your recent communication.
Snow removal: seems to work fine on our street
SRRR: no need for this at all
Food security: will think about places for new gardens
Dog runs: we don’t have a dog
Toilets at metros: won’t be using them
Chairlifts at metros: Make sure this is done properly so that a person in a wheelchair will be able to use them. Too often projects are introduced and some detail is overlooked thus rendering the work useless.
The 105: Express bus on de maisonneuve seems okay. Personally, I use the 105 to shop on Sherbrooke street which means I get on an off at various points on the route. Many people do this. Bendy buses okay.
The 102: My son takes this bus to Royal Vale High School. I have 2 more children which will be doing this. It has always been the Somerled bus. Not sure how it gets to Vendome afterwards.
We think the bus routes here are great. I like to take the 138 or 104 to Westmount.
Recreation: We use Montreal West children’s Library and maybe soon Westmount. Haven’t used much recreation in the area. Only moved here 2 years ago. Lived in Ville St-Pierre for 10 years. Grew up in Montreal west, taking the 105 to Atwater.
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50). Good day Mr. Searle (Jeremy),
Recently I received your published pamphlet “researching your opinion” at home and was vey impressed by this initiative.
I myself have been very passionate in getting involved with the public community work and have been following the progress of the various issues within the new government, city and various departments within Montreal and Quebec. As a management consultant who also want to improve the life in our communities, I have brought up various points/views for consideration with Premier Couillard and am waiting to be involved in implementing some of those initiatives. However, as some of these considerations can be applied to the city and the district of NDG/Cote-des-Neige, where I live, I would be very interested to have a meeting with you to discuss some of those ideas.
I am confident that these considerations will help many different aspects of living in Montreal and related future plans, e.g. the following sample points which might be of interest to you and other members of the city council:
improving the engagement of the public
establishing the right priorities
establishing the strategic budget
selecting the right projects
increasing the people’s satisfaction of the political leaders responsible for the city, including councillors, district mayor, and city mayor (hence re-election)
increase the support of people for initiatives that require community partnership
better resolving key issues facing Montreal community
My aim is to share and help implementing some of the ideas that support achieving above points at the city level, as a model to be duplicated and implemented at the provincial and/or national level. I look forward to hearing from you with a possible date and time for a meeting at your convenience.
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51). Dear Jeremy: I wanted to thank you for taking the time to reach out and seek our opinion on matters that are close to our daily lives. Happiness is a daily thing and paying attention to making residents’ daily commute pleasant goes a long way to increasing their well-being. I live on Patricia, close to Sherbrooke. I encourage you to have a look during hours of high train traffic, at this intersection. Traffic backlogs onto Patricia sometimes further than Terrebonne. Elmhurst is blocked by train traffic and those wishing to travel East or West on Sherbrooke are penalized. For residents, the honking and yelling of automobilists, is not pleasant. Drivers also drive dangerously on the intersection (they are exasperated) and it is dangerous for pedestrians who also cross dangerously to catch their train or bus. I understand that an over or under pass on Elmhurst is too costly and therefore not in the cards. However, I think a simple solution could be to prohibit parking on Patricia during morning and evening rush hours. The hours used for the reserved bus lane would work for the restricted parking in my view. Once parking is disallowed, three lanes off Patricia could be created, one going West on Sherbrooke, one going East and one going onto Elmhurst. Restricted parking up to the mid-way point between Patricia and Terrebonne would be sufficient in my view. We believe making de Maisonneuve into a two-way street would make a lot of sense. This would allow it to be an alternative to Sherbrooke. I agree with all of your ideas relative to the 105. I think the reserved bus lane was an excellent idea. However, for cars, continuing to allow left-hand turns off Sherbrooke when traffic is disallowed on the reserved bus lane is not efficient. When the bus lane is operational, there is one lane left for cars on Sherbrooke. When a car turns left, this jams up traffic. During bus lane hours, cars should not be allowed to turn left off Sherbrooke in my view. Since the 15N access off the Ville-Marie closure, the Decarie/Griouard/Sherbrooke area has become difficult. West Islanders are using Saint-Jacques and then drive up Girouard onto Sherbrooke to reach the 15N. That intersection cannot handle that flow and if you are adding buses etc., the situation will not be improved. Please consider this. I agree with you that snow removal is generally well done. However, on Patricia, the West side of the street is cleaned often many, many days after the East side. Snow trucks often drive down Patricia to catch Elmhurst and as you likely know, Patricia is the exit street to cross the train tracks for those living above Sherbrooke. I would like to suggest that Patricia be given some priority in snow removal and that both sides be cleaned within a day of each other. Residents joke amongst themselves that those on the East side pay higher taxes and that’s why they get priority 🙂
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52). Mr Searle,
This is in response to your flyer asking residents for their feedback regarding various issues in NDG and particularly in the Loyola district. Having been a long time resident, at the corner of Terrebonne and Cavendish since 1976, I feel my 2-cents worth have a certain weight since a fair amount of changes has taken place since then: Snow removal: Generally speaking, it seems to be OK; however, I am at a loss as to why, when there is a heavy snowfall, the snow is always piled up at street corners until either side is cleaned later. I end up with 2 big piles: 1 on the corner of Cavendish and 1 on the corner of Terrebonne. People walk on cleaned sidewalks then, when they come to the corner, they have a choice of either walking on the road or climbing on my lawn. Secondly, drivers of the little tractors that clean the sidewalks seem to take pleasure in never driving in a straight line.Even though, no cars are parked near the sidewalk, they drive in zigzag. By spring, you have to fix the damage they have caused to the edge of your lawn. Until approximately 2003 or 2004, I used to call the city and they would come to fix the edge with new grass. Now, when you call, they tell you Réno-Dépot or Canadian Tire has a sale on grass seeds Roads: Even if I live on Terrebonne, I haven’t driven on that street for a very long time, almost a year, because the road from Bessborough all the way to Girouard is full of badly patched pot holes and the asphalt is full of bumps. Somerled is almost as bad between Cavendish and Draper. Dog runs: I would love to have a fenced area for dogs to run safely in Benny Park. 2-way traffic on de Maisonneuve: This would be handy; however, on a long term basis, there could be problems. Specifically, right now, people sometimes race there because there are few stop signs and most of them are not respected. Traffic lights may make a difference. If a lane to drive eastward is created by disallowing parking, things may get a little hairy because both lanes will be just wide enough to allow one car in each direction. You get someone trying to pass a slow driver and accidents may happen. Pedestrian safety: Crossing at intersection seems to be safer with longer times for “WALK”. I haven’t really seen any intersection that would be labelled Dangerous. Porta toilets: I saw toilets cabins in Benny Park near the children’s swings and play area. These would absolutely and definitely be a huge plus at metro stations. I am sure that a survey with any of the stores or restaurants near the metro stations will confirm that they are bombarded day and night for permission to use their toilets. Cavendish extension: ”Following the clear rejection… by NDG residents in the 1990’s” I have asked various neighbors about this statement and we all haven’t got a clue where on earth this survey was done or even if it were done at all. I have lived on Cavendish for 38 years and I can swear on any Bible that no one has ever asked, either myself or any of my long time neighbors in the area, for our opinion on that topic. I, as well as my neighbors, have come a few times to the borough meetings to specifically discuss this topic and we were always told that either the subject was under study, that the Ministère des Transports was involved or that Cote St Luc was against it. We have been hearing for approximately now 5 years that everyone is for the extension, including Cote St Luc, but nothing concrete was ever brought up. I am 500% for it because, if I go near the Cavendish Mall, I see the high-rise building next to my brother’s house in St Laurent a stone throw away; yet, to visit him, I have to drive through Fleet to Décarie, up the Décarie Expressway, go through the Décarie Circle, take the Trans Canada West [40 west], exit at Cavendish to Côte Vertu just to get to his house. My neighbors and I seriously hope to live long enough to see the realization of that project. Mr Searle, I sincerely hope you will be the one bringing about those changes in Loyola
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53). Dear Mr. Searle,
Terrebonne Avenue, NDG Avenue, and Cote St. Antoine Rd. are in desperate need of resurfacing.
I do not believe porta toilets are needed at metro stations. Also, they would provide a target for vandalism.
NDG Avenue should not have bicycle paths on both sides of the street !!! Also, cars should not be able to park on both sides of this street at rush hour times in the morning.
Repair the roads and underground pipes before taking on any expense of chairlifts at metro stations.
I am against the Cavendish extension.
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54). Dear Mr. Searle,
I would like to thank you for researching public opinion with your flyer. It makes it easier to reply instead of going to Town hall meetings where public opinion appears to be of little value.
First, on an encouraging note, the snow removal was markedly improved last year over previous years. There is much road work left to do in NDG, sadly…
In my opinion, the bus lane on Sherbrooke was a waste of $ and not helping to alleviate congestion, in fact, it is increased since there is only one lane left for cars/bikes. I drive home from downtown along Sherbrooke between 330 and 430 (rush hour?) and have seen only one bus in the weeks since i noticed its implementation. This morning, I took Sherbrooke eastbound and have never seen traffic as backed up…and still no buses…
I think pedestrian safety is well taken care of; cyclists, on the other hand, are not so fortunate. Making de Maisonneuve a 2-way would surely diminish the amount of usage of the de M bike path due to increased danger. Again, get Sherbrooke back to 2-lane traffic and that would help. As for the NDG bike path (painted lines); is it possible that bikes are to ride on the wrong side of the street towards oncoming traffic and risk head-on collision with cars puling away from the sidewalk? That is a death wish! Surely the designers of the idea have never been on a bike on our streets.
I don’t know much about the Decarie tunnel, but anything would help improve the recent “improvements” at the Decarie/Met/ Marcel Laurin interchange. I am not partial to opening Cavendish – it will destroy what little peace is left to our neighbourhood and encourage more car usage. Bad idea… Perfect example is how NDG becomes a throughway for West Island commuters during intense construction times and blockages.
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55) Good afternoon Mr. Searle.
I received your pamphlet a few days ago.
Here is some feed back:
1) Snow removal was good last winter
2) Unfortunately our roads are dismal, or rather non- existent as far as safety is concerned. Since we do not have a car, I rely on my bike or public transportaion. Let me tell you even going to Cote St. Luc shopping centre, is a frightening trip. You should try it some time. When the light is red on Walkley, (returning from CSL) I am always scared to fall into one of the holes, right at the light. The same sad conditions are on Terrebonne & Fielding, where I just had to alight from the bike & walk. I am not sure why 2 very small streets ( Cassidy, Duncan?) were repaved. Either street has about 8 houses. So can you explain this.
It is no use to attend Council meetings. The few times I did, my questions were never picked. Unless you have Placards, make a lot of noise, or belong to a group, you do not count.
6) I’ll skip to number 6, Sports & R. I do belong to the new Sports Center, but find the opening hours at the gym, ridiculous. M-T, they only open at 10 a.m. I feel this is pretty late. Maybe something could be done about these hours.
I guess it would be nice to have toilet facilities at Metro stations. It would even be nicer to have a Metro Station in NDG.
You might have a good idea about the 105, but since I only take the 102, 104, 138 or the Express bus, it doesn’t concern me too much. I would appreciate more buses on my routes.
My biggest concerns are the extremely poor road conditions. If you could fix that one problem, I would be happy.
You might also bring another motion to the table. Please ask or fine professional gardeners when they just blow their cuttings/ clippings in the street.
I would like to know the percentage of returns, if possible.
Good luck
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56). Snow removal
I know quite well, my street MADISON is a minor street, so it is normal when the snow is first moved from large streets such as Sherbrooke.
What I was not happy about, when the city leaves the snow there for 3 – 5 days, and I parked my car diagonally, since all the snow made parking difficult, I got a Parking ticket.
We are supposed to park our car parallel to the sidewalk, but if they do not take away the f***ing snow, is it MY FAULT ?? The city should be reminded, a Parking ticket is then NOT ACCEPTABLE !
Maybe some idiot needed his daily quota, but this guy was close being a Nazi, he has to put himself into the position of a citizen !!
Maisonneuve Boulevard, NDG
Big enough for a two way traffic ? Barely. But putting into this tiny stretch LARGE BUSES ? You must be joking. That is a bit ridiculous;
By the way, this road is close to a Potatoe field. In my home country Germany they would be embarrassed to have such a paved street.
In Montreal it is normal to have a BADLY paved road. Some major overhaul would be needed, not just a cheap patch up. My poor car is protesting constantly !
Cavendish Street
As we all know, Cavendish DOES NOT CONNECT to Highway 40 and closeby Ikea. But it is possible !! Oh yes. It wouild be reasonable to connect it North to South COMPLETELY.
Bus 105 on Sherbrooke
Since this year, the frequency is ridiculous. This morning alone I had to wait 20 minutes (20) since either no Bus, or only FULL BUSES rushing by.
The City has cut service and 105 is a very popular route, so frankly, the Bus service and certainly at Rush Hour is not up to the needs. COMPLAIN !!
We know that the Transit system loses money, that is no secret, but maybe we could start cutting the salaries of all the fat cats on their fat ass making $ 150 – 280’000 !
And not cutting a service like the 105
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57). Hello Mr. Searle,
I am responding to your pamphlet “Researching Your Opinion.”
I think that much of Montreal’s traffic and road-safety problems are the result of too much intervention, particular intervention that has interfered with the historic flow of traffic and too much signage, both of which have been poorly thought out. The result has been that motorists, anxious to get to work or home, are more likely to do reckless things. There is so much confusing signage now that I suspect most of it is ignored. One only has to look at what Montreal West has done to recognize the insanity.
Here are some suggestions.
– Unblock entry to blocked streets like Terrebonne at Girouard. Well intentioned but simply added to traffic problems.
– Replace the lights at Grand and NDG with a stop sign.
– Give consideration to re-instating some two-way streets (NDG?, Saint Antoine?).
– Get rid of speed bumps and those silly bollards.
– Stop the random painting of chevrons for bicycle routes.
– Stop the painting of stretches of curb to identify them as no-parking.
– Educate motorists on crosswalk rules; beef up policing of crosswalk violations (one intervention I am in favour of). Have a look at all of the streets where cars are allowed to park adjacent to or even across a crosswalk, obscuring the visibility of motorists passing by. The crosswalk on Royal in front of LCC is a good example.
– Have the 105 bus stop at Vendome then continue eastward the length of Sherbrooke like the 24.
– Get rid of those silly green arrows in our traffic lights that dictate what we must do. Motorists need to know what they cannot do.
– No to portable potties at metro stations.
58). Merci Monsieur Searle pour cette occasion de pouvoir donner notre opinion. J’espere que beaucoup de gens repondront a votre invitation.
En premier lieu, j’ai toujours pense que NDG et CDN n’aurait pas du etre jumeles ensemble des le depart, pour des multiples raisons. Je pense que les deux sont perdants, compares aux autres arrondissements.
ENLEVEMENT DE LA NEIGE. Tres satisfait. Cependant je m’inquieterais sur les couts.
ROUTES ET TROITTOIRS. En tres mauvais etat. La refection devrait etre accelere.
STATIONNEMENT POR LES RESIDENTS. Ce n’est pas un probleme pour moi
SECURITE ALIMENTAIRE. Oui a votre idee. Utiliser les espaces disponibles pour en faire des jardins communautaires pour alimenter le food depot
PARC A CHIENS. Je n’ai pas d’opinion sur ce sujet.
SPORTS ET LOISIRS. NDG a ete pendant longtemps un endroit qui produisit des vedettes sportives. Le sport doit etre encourage a tout les nivaux.
OPTIMISATION DU BLVD NAISONNEUVE.. Oui. Tasser la cloture si l’espace est trop restraint.
SECURITE DES PIETONS. Je sais que ce sujet vous tiens a coeur, Eduquer les conducteurs et que la police soit presente.
TOILETTES. Oui.
REMONTEES. Oui
LE TUNNEL DECARIE. En faveur si cela decongestionne le traffic.
LA LIGNE 105 . Oui dans les deux sens
AMELIORATION DES LIGNES D’AUTOBUS. Je n’ai pas d’opinion arrete sur ce sujet.
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59). PROLONGEMENT DE CAVENDISH. Pas tres en accord. Le traffic residentiel sera augmente et la securite sera compromise sur les rues de NDG. J’aimerais voir plus d’etudes sur ce sujet. Comment se fait-il que CSL a manifeste son refus pendant tant d’annees.
AUTRES SUJETS. Licences pour bicycles. Enlever les souches d’arbres que l’on voit de plus en plus sur nos rues.Mettre plus de bancs dans nos parcs. Installer plus de speed bumps. Ameliorer la rue Sherbrooke a partir de Girouard vers l’ouest. Ca fait dur.
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60). Hello Jeremy, my comments on your opinion flyer: snow removal. On my street, they always push the snow from the middle over to our side. So we have a lot more to shovel. But they always clear the other side first. Wouldn’t it make sense to clear the side with the most snow first? I am fed up with shovelling out to the roadway and then they come along and push a whole load more in, which is there for almost a week sometimes. In general, though, the snow removal has improved a lot in recent years. I am still baffled by some of the priorities though-clearing Terrebonne that has no buses before Somerled that has some? roads: terrible in general. Terrebonne near Loyola is very bad, except for the bit near Belmore where Russell Copeman lives.It is good to have dips in sidewalks at corners for strollers and wheelchairs to pass, but they are not done properly.Those on the south side of Mayfair and Somerled, for example, always have water collected. In winter, those gaps are ALWAYS icy and dangerous. They should be laid so that water goes along the gutter, away from them. Something MUST be done about people riding bikes on sidewalks. They never think that people are not aware they are coming behind them.They swoop by at speed with no warning. When I am walking my dog, there have been many occasions when, if I had moved over a foot at the wrong time, I would have been hit and badly injured by some stupid and thoughtless cyclist. Drivers have mandatory education. Cyclists have none. They should all have licences for their bikes and have to pass a course in safety on the road. I have arthritis, a fall would be very bad for me. But I meet many other more healthy people who are very angry about this too. NDG food depot: I support this with donations, we must provide a good facility for this. dog runs: I know you initiated the dog run on Fielding and Patricia. At some later time, when you were not on council, they dumped a huge amount of small pebbles into that space. My dog wants to go in there, but once he steps on the pebbles, he won’t run. It is like running on a pebbly beach-hard work. I suggest that half or more of the pebbles are removed. Then the rest are tamped down with one of those machines they use when laying ornamental paving in driveways etc.(it has a large flat plate that vibrates up and down to settle the paving stones in firmly) This will pack the pebbles into the earth and make a firm surface for the dogs to run on. That dog run is very little used because of that problem. porta toilets at metro stations: excellent idea, I’m all for it and so are most older people I would think. As for Vendome metro, what on earth is going on there? No elevator, lots of steps? Are they mad? I can’t believe the stupidity of the hospital plans.Chairlifts do sound like a good idea as a stopgap measure, but the whole metro/hospital thing needs rethinking. 102/105 buses: I like the idea of express buses here. The summer schedule for the 102 was totally ridiculous, in future they should not do that. My issue: There are 3 places for a city tree in my front garden. The city had to cut down an old maple about 7 years ago. That place, along the driveway is full of old roots, I covered it with ground cover. Then they planted an ash tree in the second place 5 or 6 years ago. They came and cut it down this spring, I understand about the emerald borer etc. But it is still growing very vigorously. The third place for a tree is where I have planted a garden of perennials.I am afraid they will just show up some day, dig a hole and dump a new tree in there with no notice.I left a message on 311 but nobody has told me a thing about what they will do. The ash tree stump is not that large, they could probably get it out and put another tree in there.How do I get information about this from someone in the city? From my certificate of location, the city seems to own about 3.3m in from the sidewalk, between 10 and 11 feet. What are my options? Could I hire a company to get the stump out myself and plant another tree there? How do I check how far back the city property goes-maybe I could plant my own tree on my own property? If they want to remove ash trees, I can’t understand why they aren’t removing growing stumps because the borer could still be there. I just want to talk it over with a city employee for a start.
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61). Hi,
– SRRR (Reserved Residential Parking) – I’m not a big fan of this. I think that it is difficult enough to find parking, with the residents already in the area, and to PAY for an annual permit fee for this, I am against.
– De Maisonneuve Boulevard – seems to be an interesting alternative, however, by keeping the bike lane, I don’t see how vehicules will be able to park there if it does become a 2-way.
– Porta Toiles at Metro Stations – even though I no longer use the Metro and rarely use the bus, I think this would be a great idea, especially during the summer for tourists.
– The Decarie Tunnel – sounds like a wonderful plan; anything to alleviate congestion of traffic.
– 105 West, Vendome to Elmhurst – sounds good. I remember living off of Sherbrooke Street, in a couple of places that were around Grand blvd and even further west.
– 105 East from Elmhurst to Vendome – if the De Maisonneuve blvd 2-way traffic goes through, then this would be a great idea. I remember the 105 always being full, even when it was coming by every 5 minutes during rush hour.
– Cavendish Highway extension – I am a big advocator for this plan that has been years in negotiation and re-negotiation. It would greatly alleviate the heavy traffic that NDGers have to try to get to the Decarie highway. When I worked in VSL, I was living on Somerled near Grand, and it took SO long just to get to the Decarie highway, whether I used Somerled ave or CSL road or Fielding. I had wished to be able to use Cavendish blvd to get home which would have cut my travel time easily in half.
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62). Thank you for summarizing some of the important subjects you are working on and inviting your constituents to contact you.
I do not have driveway privileges through my lease, so it is street parking for me. Our building has a driveway, no garage. Across the street, the buildings do have garages, with a shared sloping driveway to enter to the garages of two unattached buildings.
My complaint concerns the snow removal services for the buildings across the road (4895 on one side of the shared driveway and 4889/4887 on the other). Whereas the snow removal for our building (4940 downstairs from me) is done by pushing the snow to the back of the driveway and keeping it on the property, the snow removal contractor for 4895/4889/4887 plows the driveway up to the street, crosses the street pushing his load, and dumps it on the street right in front of our building. I certainly do not find it neighbourly that someone who has the luxury of a garage and driveway, sees fit to misuse public property, preventing those of us less fortunate in the “parking realm” from finding any parking!
I realize these services are provided by a private contractor, and not the city crews, but is there not any by-law or other regulation to prevent this practice, very frustrating for the neighbours? It is undoubtedly much more expedient for the contractor to push snow on the road than to pile it up on the property (I guess it would have to be the front lawns for these dwellings) or to take it away. On Montclair, we aren’t the first ones to get the city snow removal services; I know it would be easier to wait for the snow removal crews to make it to our street if there were not such big piles of snow dumped on the street by private contractors.
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63). Bonjour M. Searle,
Tel que demandé, je vous offre mon opinion sur certains points concernant notre arrondissement.
Circuit autobus 105 : oui à un express (voie réservée) aux heures de pointe et oui aux autobus articulés. Pas normal (et pas sécuritaire?) d’être entassé debout de Vendôme à Cavendish…
Parcs à chiens : oui, il en faut (un seul existe dans tout mon secteur). Les chiens qui peuvent courir et dépenser leur énergie sont des chiens plus dociles et moins agressifs; un plus pour tout l’monde. Mais attention de ne pas aller les mettre à côté d’habitations (jappements); un équilibre pas facile, j’en suis conscient…!
Boulevard de Maisonneuve : je ne suis pas favorable à la direction à deux sens sur de Maisonneuve. Déjà que les automobilistes longent de très près la voie cyclable, qu’est-ce que ce sera à deux directions!?
Boulevard Cavendish : je suis favorable au prolongement de Cavendish vers l’autoroute 20, qui va probablement diminuer la circulation sur St-Jacques, de Maisonneuve, etc. Mais du même coup, je suis contre le prolongement jusqu’à la Transcanadienne; Cavendish ne doit pas devenir un autre boul. Décarie!
Puis-je suggérer que la ville se munisse d’outils pour mieux contrôler les dépenses? Peut-on également rendre imputables les élus lorsqu’il y a mauvaise gestion de nos taxes? Je suis responsable d’un budget à mon travail et si je fais de grosses erreurs, je serai mis à pied. Ce doit être le même principe qui se manifeste au domaine public.
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64). Bonjour Mr Searle,
J’aimerais vous remercier du pamphlet que vous avez envoyé récemment dans le but d’avoir nos opinions et propositions concernant notre arrondissement. Ma conjointe et moi avons pris le temps de lire le document et nous nous voulons vous faire part de nos suggestions.
Sports et loisirs: Bonification / maximalisation du parc Benny
a) Le parc Benny est génial durant les mois d’été mais devient désertique lors des mois d’hiver. Il serait pertinent d’y voir une patinoire familiale, des montagnes de neige pour la glissade et divers jeux d’hivers. J’en suis sur que les nombreuses familles de NDG profiteraient des ses installations et aiderons à passer un hiver plus jovial.
b) Il serait intéressant d’avoir des fin de semaines “Farmers market” afin de promouvoir la consommation locale et augmenter le sentiment d’appartenance communautaire.
Sécurité des piétons: Installer un passage piéton pour un accès plus facile au Benny parc sur la rue Cavendish (ex.: Starnes / Cavendish, ou Duncan / Cavendish). Ceci aidera de même à diminuer la vitesse des automobilistes dans une zone écolière.
Rue Sherbrooke: Il semble avoir une confusion de la part des automobilistes depuis la modification de la rue Sherbrooke (une voie de Cavendish à Girouard). Il semblerait logique d’installer une piste cyclable afin d’éviter cette confusion et des accidents potentiels.
Tunnel Décarie: Nous sommes d’accord avec la proposition d’un tunnel.
Prolongement de Cavendish: Cette mesure est intéressante et pourrait faciliter la vie à une grande partie de la population de NDG. Par contre, nous aimerons être informés des impacts concernant la congestion afin de prendre une décision plus approfondie.
Encore une fois, merci d’avoir sollicité notre point de vu. Nous sommes contents d’avoir l’opportunité de partager nos préoccupations et d’être entendus afin d’améliorer notre quartier.
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65). Bonsoir Monsieur Searle,
Habitant l’arrondissement nous souhaitions répondre à votre invitation d’exprimer notre opinion concernant certains des sujets évoqués dans votre communication. Nous résidons sur la rue West Hill entre Sherbrooke et De Maisonneuve. Vous trouverez ci-dessous les points sur lesquels nous avons une opinion mon épouse et moi-même. En espérant que notre opinion sera considéré.
Stationnement réservé aux résidents : Il est vrai qu’en période d’hiver il peut être un peu plus laborieux de trouver devant chez soi un stationnement à cause de la neige, mais nous n’en voyons pas l’utilité à ce jour. C’est évident que si le boulevard De Maisonneuve devenait à double sens, cela deviendrait peut-être nécessaire car le stationnement sur De Maisonneuve est une alternative actuellement. Mais les frais annuels seraient encore des frais à rajouter alors que nos taxes sont tout même élevés pour des personnes comme nous de la classe moyenne.
Parc à chiens : nous comprenons le besoin éventuel d’en avoir plus, mais il faudrait s’assurer que cela ne se fasse pas au détriment de la sécurité des enfants, car il y a beaucoup de chiens par exemple au parc Girouard qui pour se rendre au parc à chien sont épeurant pour les enfants. Il serait bon aussi de voir à ce que les règlements soit appliqués. Par exemple au parc du centre sportif Monkland, il est très fréquent que la pelouse soit souillée d’excrément canin. Les animaux, oui mais pas au détriment de l’hygiène et des loisirs de notre avenir à tous, les enfants.
Sports et Loisirs : Nous sommes bien placé au niveau infrastructure, puisque la nouvelle bibliothèque devrait bientôt voir le jour. Les travaux vont-ils être livré comme prévus? Nous utilisons la pisicne Monkland, et en sommes satisfait. Le seul Bémol est que nous trouvons l’accès au bains libre un peu restrictif, il serait plus facile d’y avoir accès de façon plus étalé, c’est-à-dire des heures plus prolongé que seulement 55 minutes ce qui ne laisse que peu de flexibilité en semaine avec des enfants.
Optimisation du boulevard De Maisonneuve : Nous sommes plutôt contre ce projet, car la piste cyclable est la plus sécuritaire de NDG par ce que justement elle plus isolé. L’embranchement après le métro Vendome et le chemin Upper Lachine est très dangereux déjà à sens unique, nous avons failli être écrasé pas plus tard que Samedi dernier. Si cette option devait être choisi, il faudrait sécuriser la piste cyclable avec des « séparateurs » en béton plus sécuritaire que des poteaux. De plus les stationnements le long du boulevard qu’utilisent les résidents de toutes les rues perpendiculaires seraient supprimés, ce qui aurait un impact important sur la qualité de vie de toutes les personnes vivant en dessous de Sherbrooke. Des ralentisseurs seraient necessaires même maintenant car la circulation y est trop rapide.
Sécurité des piétons : les signaux pour piétons sont très court sur les grosses artères comme Décarie et Queen Mary. En sortant du Métro Snowdown pour se rendre à l’école Internationale, il est fastidieux de traverser avec un enfant car les feux sont très court. Rajouter des ralentisseurs dans les rue et près des parcs est vraiment très bien, merci de continuer à le faire et éventuellement d’en rajouter devant certaines écoles SVP.
Remontées Mécaniques dans les stations de Métro : les familles avec des poussettes,
ou les personnes handicapés ne sont pas considérées suffisamment. Le gain en autonomie que cela engendrerai pour ces personnes serait important. Bien que les coûts soient élevés, cela serait une bonne chose.
Ligne 105 : les deux propositions sont pleines de bon sens dans les deux sens, il faut juste ne pas réduire la fréquence des autobus, mais c’est une excellente idée. Les autobus articulés sont une très bonne idée.
Prolongement de Cavendish : bien que vos arguments soient logiques, il est vrai aussi que beaucoup de résident de NDG vont emprunter cette nouvelle voie. Le temps gagné par les habitants de l’Arrondissement n’est pas négligeable sur leur qualité de vie. Décarie est un enfer à toute les heures de la journée. L’impact sur la pollution à cause des embouteillages est aussi à prendre en compte, la circulation devrait être plus fluide néanmoins sur Décarie. Et sur Cavendish, la circulation devrait être régulée avec des feux de circulation. Nous sommes plutôt pour ce projet.
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66). Mr. Searle, I will give you my opinion on certain subject maters as I think need to be addressed. My first one RESERVED RESIDENTIAL PARKING (SRRR) Yes in my opinion this is a good idea. I live at the corner of Walkley and Sherbrooke. Now any one who lives in this area have a hard time finding a parking spot because the customers of CARDO do not want to pay a parking fee in the meters in front of CARDO. I would gladly pay for a parking permit for my daughter who comes up every so often from Champlain NY to see me. I have to walk around with a cane and some time I have a hard time walking around. My second one PEDESTRIAN SAFETY I have my opinion on this. As stated I live at the corner of Sherbrooke and Walkley. A pedestrian crossing Walkley from the area of Kerwin apartments to Meldrums the mover are taking there lives in there hands. They have to fight for there right against cars turning right from Sherbrooke to Walkley. Even the 105 which has a bus stop in front of Meldrums has to watch out for the cars and vans as they pass the bus on its left side and turning right to go up Walkley. This happens very often and yes it happened to me as I was crossing Walkley. My third one PORTA TOILETS AT METRO STATIONS Very good idea. To bad the Drapeau administration did not think of it. My fourth one CHAIR LIFITS AT METRO STATIONS To bad the Drapeau administration did not think of it at the time also the elevator. As I have a hard time walking up and down stairs I no longer use the Metro but prefer the buss. My fifth one BENDY BUSES FOR THE 105 Very good idea as long as you can have the administration of Meldrums have Allied Van Lines respect the rights of Seniors at the corner of Sherbrooke St. And Walkley. It seams that when Allied shows up it is always two vans and both block the bus stop with one on the sidewalk while the other stays in the bus lane as well as the second lane leaving the bus to stop half way across Walkley to let the passengers off. Or move the Buss stop to the other side of Walkley in front of 6651 Sherbrooke St. W, My sixth one CAVENDISH AND SHERBROOKE PEDESTRIAN WALK LIGHT Is it at all possible to have the timing of that light to last a little longer. A lot of us seniors can not walk fast enough to cross from one side to the other without a motorist who is in a hurray to turn right in front of us as we cross. Don’t forget Cavendish is a very large Blvd. You ask for our opinions on certain maters and I have given you mine as I think should be addressed
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67). Hi Mr. Jeremy Searle,
It was nice to meeting you to discuss about our issues. Thank you for your time there.
About the parking problem in the street, the best solution I found is to not to allow to park from 3 AM to 6 AM. That way people (from CSL) will not leave their cars overnight, and at the same time we can park our visitors cars on the street in normal hours.
I forgot to mention a concern I always had. There are some streets in Montreal, for example Blvd Decarie, in which there are signs not allowing to park at certain hours from Monday to Friday. That makes sense because of rush hour. My question is why do not add to the sign an exception for Holidays like labour day or Canada day, in which there is no rush hour, and does not make sense the prohibition.
You talked about the Cavendish ‘Extension’. As alternative to the use of the car, why not to improve the public transit? Why not an expreso bus from NDG to Ville Saint Laurent? Why not an extension of the metro along Cote-Saint-Luc Road or Sherbrooke until Westminster?
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68). Dear Mr. Searle,
Here is my opinion regarding some the subjects mentioned in the questionnaire that I received from the borough a while ago:
Snow removal: 2013-2014 was indeed the worst snow removal I remember since I moved from Calgary to Montreal in 2004. Usually, I have no complaints regarding the snow removal. I indeed find the process quite impressive. In comparison to other years, last year was the worst. Please note that I lived in the same address since 2004.
Roads and sidewalks: I am sure that you are aware of the state of our roads and sidewalks. I was driving on Terrebonne near Cavedendish and there were so many potholes one after the other, as if grenades were exploded on the road in war zone. The roads are getting worse and are blocked by orange cones, with no work being done. If the city wants to work on a patch of road, please work on it, clean up and open the road.
Sports and recreation: Space is needed for people to go and shoot baskets. Some decent basketball hoops in parks around NDG would be great and I don’t think it would be costly.
Pedestrian safety: Police must reinforce the law and issue ticket to drivers who do not stop for pedestrians. The ones who do usually are pressured by a driver honking their horns and rushing them.
Porta toilets at Metro stations: I am absolutely against this. I do not want to look at them on the way to metro station or inside a metro station. They make the space look ugly and it is disgusting. Please invest on making decent washrooms at metro stations.
Chairlifts at Metro Station: No. Invest the money on the long term elevator project. It is mind blowing that installing an elevator in Snowdon station is supposed to take a few years! I think Calgary Children Hospital was built faster than the Snowdon elevator.
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69). Thank you for your flyer asking for opinions.
My pet peeve for the last few years is the sidewalks. The first two summers I lived here (2010, 2011), the sidewalks were wonderfully smooth. Last summer and the summer before they seemed to be infested with those small sharp stones used for traction in winter well through the summer. Last summer the sidewalks were only really smooth by the fall. This year, they’re still not smooth – I encounter last year’s abrasives after every time it rains. This really bothers me, especially when I see the road sweepers out twice a week and the sidewalk sweepers out once a year, if that. If you are paying the same people the same amount, you are not getting your money’s worth, because things have gone downhill. Also, it takes more than one sweep to get most of the stones off the sidewalks. And I wonder why the street is swept twice a week (something I have never seen in any of the other cities I have lived in) in the first place. (Maybe it’s to keep snow clearers employed in the warmer months?) My social worker tells me there are streets that are rarely cleaned, so I suppose I shouldn’t complain we are getting regular sweeps, but it does seem expensive for the results.
Also, you ask about chairlifts at metro stations. In my opinion, anything you can do to make the metro more accessible is a good thing. The sooner the better. And yes, toilets would be a good thing, too. (Accessible ones!) If there’s anything you can do to get the STM to be more accessible in general, that would be great. They don’t really seem to understand disability very well. I have not been allowed on transit since January 2012, after 20 months without problems (I moved here May 2010) because they are afraid I will hurt myself on transit. And they don’t use email for serious issues, which is also an accessibility issue. But that’s probably not in your jurisdiction. I just thought I’d add a little rant.
The Cavendish extension: I am not a driver, but the extension would make getting to the Ikea a lot easier, assuming there would be sidewalks all the way and you would be connecting the two sections. It would make a nice walk on a sunny day. That’s my only thought on the subject.
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70). Bonjour,
Dans un premier temps, je vous félicite d’avoir eu l’idée de consulter les candidats face à leur/s préoccupation/s. Cela démontre votre ouverture à bien remplir le mandat qui vous a été confié.
Pour ma part, à NDG je crois que les routes et les trottoirs devraient faire partie des priorités ainsi que la sécurité des citoyens de façon générale. Toutefois, je constate qu’il y a eu beaucoup d’améliorations..
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71). Dear Mr. Searle,
We recently received a letter through our mail slot requesting our opinion on various issues in western NDG. Thank you very much for this opportunity for our contribution to the democratic process. Here are our views:
Snow Removal: OK for our area (starnes st.)
Roads and Sidewalks: Recommend improving east west streets to help with traffic crunch during the ongoing “traffic storm.”
Food Security: we support community food initiatives, to provide access to Food Security.
Sports and Recreation: Generally good, but we would like to see more summer activities for children.
De Maisonneuve Boulevard: We are against making de Maisonneuve bi-directional through NDG – we prefer the current arrangement.
Pedestrian Safety: We would like to see more reserved lane bike lanes (such as the deMaisonneuve bike path).
Porta Toilets at metro stations: We are against this idea – they are eye sores, smell, and are not convinced of their utility.
Chairlifts at metro stations: Not a priority to us, but why not.
The Decarie Tunnel: Sound like a great idea, I think it would hep tremendously with traffic in Montreal, definitely support this idea.
105 West: Do not see the need, so not support.
Bendy buses for the 105: Yes, we support this idea.
Improving bus routes: The 102 is not a priority for us; we would prefer to see more frequent service on the 104.
Cavendish highway extension: we oppose this initiative. Given that we live adjacent to Cavendish, we are concerned about the import increase in traffic. We do not wish to live adjacent to the equivalent of Sources or St Jean, and are not convinced it is necessary. We absolutely do not agree with the extension.
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72). Hello Jeremy,
Thank you for sending out the booklet asking for our opinion. I have lived in NDG for 15 years now, and to be honest never bothered to voice my opinion in regards to the neighbourhood. In the last few years I have been getting more in touch with the area as my husband and I have started looking at NDG more as a home, not the place we are living.
Many of the topics you brought up in the booklet are great, glad to see they are at the top of your list. I will only focus on a few.
This will be long. Sorry…
Dog Runs
PROBLEMS:
Yes we are dog owners, there are many in this areas & it is surprising how few dog runs there are. I know people assume that if you own a dog you should have a place with a backyard. Most do but dogs need a place to socialize with each other and other people. I know there are many in NDG who do not like dogs (many live on my street largely because they come from places where dogs are usually trained to be violent, as they tell me) but if dogs are not given a chance to socialize then problems do occur, they are sometimes harder to take on walks when there are other people around.
In my area, in particular (boxed in area from Sherbrooke W. up to Côte St. luc Rd. & Connaught to West Broadway) there are TONS of dog owners. Our dog run is horrible!
It is located on Fielding between Patricia and Trenholme at the end of William Bowie Park. It is too narrow, and if you get more than 3 dogs in there they can’t get much energy out. Not to mention that with it being right next to the road many of the dogs just run along the fence and bark at cars (not a good behaviour to have reinforced in dogs in a city & not fair to homeowners close by). If it rains it becomes a giant puddle of saturated dog pee as the gravel isn’t really spread out well. Also a gravel base is bad for dogs paws.
The park just underwent a facelift, as the park had irrigation issues, but the dog run was not touched.
POSSIBLE SOLUTIONS/IDEAS
I think a better location for a dog run in the area would be at the park down the street between Coronation & Doherty on Fielding. There is enough space to add a dog park that would be close enough for dog owners, large enough for all in the area and away from the roads.
I think it would also be nice to get a specialist in dog parks to come in to redesign the existing ones and any new ones. Many dog parks in the US are getting a makeover with a focus on proper stimulation for the dogs.
Porta Toilets
Great idea! I know many who are relieved (pun intended!)
I was wondering if the idea of Public Toilets as done in Europe have been considered in the city. People say Montreal feels like walking into some parts of Europe, why not add the Public Toilets?
Chairlifts in Metros
Another great idea! I have a baby and try to get around everywhere with my stroller but have avoided the metro because of poor access in this area.
I was wondering if these would not be an easy option instead of elevators in the metros that are closer to the surface, like Vendome?
102 Bus Route
Something does need to get done about this route.
East bound:I live at the terminus for this route. The new time change has done nothing to help the line, I find more people are running to catch the bus & the driver not stopping or always having to stop and pick up runners just before they turn down Patricia.
By the time the bus has hit Girouard it is packed & gets stuck in traffic on Decarrie on route to Vendome.
West bound: I agree with your assessment.
I ‘m not sure what can be done, except to say it is nice to have the 102 close by, not having to walk several long blocks to 103, 51 or 162, especially on days with horrible weather.
Cavendish Highway Extension
I really wish Cavendish continued further north. Ikea would be easier to get to! I know many people who work up there & many who live in that direction who work in our area that this option would benefit.
I remember hearing an alternate option that city council was supposed to have put into the budget but cut at last minute making Côte St. Luc council furious, a plan to connect Kildare to Jean Talon via the old hippodrome. Is that something that’s still on the table?
Concerns not in booklet
I see there was an off ramp built on the Decarie (south bound) leading to De Maisonneuve. It is currently blocked off. Will this open soon?
I have seen the bus route 262 thought Côte St. Luc, that takes senior residents down to Angrignon Tuesday -Thursday. I think this route should be expanded to an actually bus route with stops in NDG. This far side of NDG is boxed off from much access to major chain stores either by train tracks or highways. Those who take public transit to spots such as Jean Talon & Angrignon take a long time, it turns into a day trip.
The city has been pushing people to stop taking their cars everywhere and encourages biking. With that a few years ago I decided to take up biking to reduce on dealing with poor bus routes that do not get me places locally (I don’t travel outside the area). I was excited to take my bike to attend zumba classes at the new centre sportif NDG on Monkland. On my second last class my bike was stolen. I was devastated as I had saved up for a long time to get a new bike (i’ve never had a brand new bike). I filed a police report & they asked me if there were security cameras in the area. Police said they would have a better chance at catching the suspect if there was video. I remembered seeing cameras mounted on the building and hoped the centre had caught something. Sadly all cameras are pointed at the building. All the bike racks are set far away from the building, close to the streets, a few racks surrounded by trees with poor lines of sight. I also found out that mine was not the first, but the fourth stolen, since the centre’s opening (this was the first year it was open). I spoke with Peter McQueen at a social function. He asked me to email the details to him. I did and got a thanks for emailing me & please support the party email from him. Only this year have I returned to the centre (via bus or by foot) & I see the only improvement to the bike rack system was signs telling people how they should be locking their bikes up. I find that rude. If someone is going to steal your stuff and they want it badly enough they will find a way. I don’t believe it would be so hard to install camera’s or have camera’s facing the directions of racks or even the playgrounds to ensure the safety of residents and their belongings.
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73). Hello Mr. Searle,
It has taken me a while to actually sit down and write to you with respect to your recent mailing.
As a resident of West Hill Ave. (between Somerled and Fielding), I have several concerns:
1) Our roads are treacherous, particularly for cyclists. Riding up Grand Boulevard (on the bike path, no less!!) and then west on Somerled means taking your life in your own hands. In fact, my son had a nasty run-in with a pothole and was thrown from his bike, resulting in road rash on his hand and leg. My boyfriend lives outside of Montreal and jokes that he finds Somerled reminiscent of a war zone. With the taxes we pay, the condition of our roads is absolutely shameful.
2) I don’t agree with the idea of opening De Maisonneuve to two-way traffic. The narrowness of this roadway would make it more dangerous for cyclists. Plus, the stretch you are referring to provides some of the only free (and much-needed) parking in the area of the Concordia University sports facility.
3) I live directly across from Doug Harvey Arena and am often not able to park near my home as soon as the snow begins to fall (Dec-Mar). In fact, parking on West Hill and surrounding streets becomes difficult around dinnertime as early as September, when hockey season starts. The arena parking lot often remains half-empty, because people prefer to park on West Hill or Biermans to be closer to the entrance (you can exit the arena into the parking lot, but you cannot enter). Once there is snow accumulation, the problem is exacerbated because there are fewer spots in the parking lot AND on the streets. WE DEFINITELY NEED reserved residential parking on West Hill! Please, please, if you can make this happen, my neighbours and I who don’t have access to a driveway (i.e. own or rent upper duplexes) would be eternally grateful!
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74) Dear Mr Searle,
A few weeks ago all the residents of our street (Borden between Somerled and Fielding) received notices that the sidewalks would be repaired between Oct 8 and 31st.
The only activity has been the daily movement of the folding ‘No Parking’ signs on different sections of the street, varying in placement. So far nothing has been done.
There are painted marks on the sidewalk as to where replacement will take place.
When I took my dog for a walk I noticed that there are many other sections equally in need of replacement. What criteria was used to decide?
I took photos and have attached only some of them so you can see what has been omitted. Can anything be done?
jeremysearleloyoladistrict.wordpress.com 
