CDN-NDG getting new bike paths, but councillor says process is rushed

The Côte-Des-Neiges—Notre-Dame-De-Grâce borough council has approved three new bike paths and the refurbishment of two others, but the administration can't say how the move will impact other road users. 

The three new paths will be on Upper Lachine Road between Decarie Boulevard and Grand Boulevard, on Isabella Street between Macdonald and Lemieux streets and on Jean-Brillant between Decelles and Edouard-Montpetit streets. 

The borough will revamp bike paths on Notre-Dame-de-Grace Avenue and on Grand Boulevard between Monkland Avenue and Cote-Saint-Luc Road. 

The Projet Montreal councillor for the Loyola District, Christian Arsenault, said the borough's administration chose the streets after residents had been asking for new bike paths on them for years. 

Arsenault said the new paths will serve two purposes: to create more cycling infrastructure in Côte-Des-Neiges and to make the existing one in NDG safer. 

But independent city councillor Marvin Rotrand said the borough should have done more work before approving the changes. 

'They are giddy with ideology'

Rotrand says the borough's engineers should have first studied which streets to put the paths on, and should have consulted the population before getting council approval. 

"Not even the most elementary questions can be answered: How much parking will be lost? What are the traffic impacts? [They say,] 'We'll study it after the fact,'" Rotrand said. 

He said "they've put the cart before the horse."

Rotrand said the borough's current bike path plans don't take into account the parking and public transit situations in the areas.

Arsenault defended his party's process, saying, "We've already been hearing from people. We've already been engaging in this discussion.

"Just because it hasn't been a super formal consultation, doesn't mean that we're not listening to residents."

Arsenault said the approval is only the first step. The borough will take the time to properly evaluate the right way to integrate the lanes, he explained. 

"We're looking for the right balance, the right compromise, so that everyone can safely share the road," Arsenault said.