Montreal contractor faces fine after video shows snow-clearing vehicle crushing bike

A snow-clearing contractor is in hot water after a video surfaced online showing one of its vehicles dragging and crushing a bike along a sidewalk in Griffintown.

The video surfaced over the weekend.

Southwest borough mayor Benoit Dorais said he'll be sitting down with the contractor on Tuesday and they will be issuing a fine. He also expects the company to cover the cost of replacing the bike.

"It's totally unacceptable," said Dorais, adding that it wasn't the first time the contractor has been caught destroying property.

He saw the company hit two bikes right in front of him last week. Garbage cans belonging to the borough have also been damaged.

"Employees have to look, they have to be safe. We can see in the video it was a lack of judgment."

Bike mangled 

Martin Delage spotted the snow-clearing vehicle rolling down a sidewalk in front of his home on Barré Street. He started recording as the vehicle tore the locked bike off a pole. The driver does not stop and pushes it along the sidewalk with the snow.

"It was surprising to see how disrespectful the snow clearer was with people's property," he said.

Delage's roommate went down to check on the bike after the vehicle left. He said it was completely mangled.

• Montreal snow plan calls for improved parking, more cycling

No one has come forward to claim the bike. According to Delage, it had been there for about four months.

After capturing the video, Delage posted it to a Facebook group and it was shared widely online.

This comes as the City of Montreal is trying to encourage cyclists to continue riding through the winter months. In February the city will be hosting an international conference on winter cycling.