City to consult on plan to build road through Boisé Steinberg

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Cutting down on through traffic from trucks and greening the area are among the motivations for a project to extend Assomption Blvd. towards Notre-Dame St. E. in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district.

On Tuesday night, the borough began the first of numerous information sessions it plans to hold in the coming months to consult residents on its plans for area around the Boisé Steinberg and Boisé Vimont.

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The plan, which has been in the works since 2013, is to close Dickson St., but to make it easier for trucks from the Port of Montreal to access Highway 25 via Souligny Ave. Truck traffic is currently problematic, as trucks try to avoid traffic on Notre-Dame to reach the highway, so it’s hoped the project will keep trucks on the main arterial network and off local streets.

As it now stands, there are five ways for trucks to get out of the Port of Montreal. The city wants to make one unique exit point from the port area, and prevent trucks from spilling onto Notre-Dame St. E and causing major traffic jams. The plan is to build a more direct access to Souligny Ave. through a new street, which would be built in the area marked off for an extension of Assomption Blvd., which currently ends at Hochelaga St.

Extending Assomption Blvd. would also allow the city to close off Dickson St., and ease traffic for local residents. The project also calls for bike paths to be extended at Notre-Dame, Hochelaga, and for the Souligny Ave. Réseau express vélo (REV) to be extended west. A bike path would also be built on the closed Dickson St.

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Residents will be asked whether Assomption Blvd. should link directly from Hochelaga to Notre Dame, because doing so would require a road to be built through the Boisé Steinberg.

The city purchased part of the Boisé Steinberg recently from Hydro-Québec, with a view of preserving it as a green space. It is also negotiating with CN to purchase and preserve at least a part of the Vimont woods.

Speaking to reporters, Sophie Mauzerolle, the Plante administration’s point person on mobility, explained that if it is built, the portion of Assomption through the wooded area would be reserved for local residents to access their neighbourhood, and trucks would be banned.

“We want to be able to preserve as much green space as possible,” Mauzerolle said. “But if residents tell us they want a local street, we’ll make sure it will strain the wooded area as little as possible.”

Building a road would force the relocation of 50 trees, while if the wooded area is preserved without adding a road, the city will plant more trees in the sector.

“If we don’t do that local road, there is a risk of an impact on the neighbourhood, and it will make it harder for people to navigate through the neighbourhood,” Mauzerolle said.

The project has been the subject of environmental hearings at the province’s Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement. a report was also prepared by the Office de consultation publique de Montréal.

She said the city has held off on consulting residents because there was a lawsuit with Ray-Mont logistics, and there was a confidentiality agreement with CDPQ Infra while it was studying a potential REM de l’Est transit project.

There is no timetable yet for the project, and a price tag can’t be determined before the city determines whether a road is needed in the area.

jmagder@postmedia.com

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