Two more Montreal cyclists in hospital after vehicle collisions
Incidents occurred day after mayor proposed changes to Highway Safety Code
Two cyclists were sent to hospital Saturday morning after separate collisions involving vehicles on Montreal roads.
In the first incident, a 25-year-old woman was struck by city street-cleaning truck around 8 a.m.
Police say the truck was making its way north on St-Laurent Boulevard when it manoeuvred to clean the intersection at Mozart Avenue.
It was as the truck was turning that it collided with the cyclist, said Const. Caroline Chevrefils.
The woman was transported to hospital with lower-body injuries. Her life isn't thought to be in danger.
The second incident occurred around 8:30 a.m., near the intersection of St-Zotique Street East and 15th Avenue. A cyclist there was struck by a car as it changed lanes (police had initially identified the vehicle as a truck).
Chevrefils said that cyclist only suffered minor injuries, but was still taken to hospital.
Cyclist safety a political issue
The safety of cyclists has become a hot-button political issue in recent days.
Mayor Denis Coderre, on Friday, proposed a series of changes to the Highway Safety Code after being criticized for inaction by Projet Montréal.
Coderre said he would like to see cyclists be able to cross on the pedestrian light. He also proposed implementing photo radar in certain high-risk areas.
Magali Bebronne, a cycling activist with Vélo Québec, says the roads in the city are simply not made for sharing.
"The roads are built either for people to see each other or not," Bebronne said.
Bebronne says the city should consider options like advanced stop lines for cyclists as a way to make intersections safer.
In 2015, there were three deaths and a total of 760 cyclists injured. That's a 16.6 per cent increase from the number of cyclists injured in 2014.