Drivers can still motor over Mount Royal this summer, but not on Sunday mornings

Montreal isn't going to stop motorists from using Mount Royal as a shortcut through the city this summer, nor will an alternating one-way section be installed near the top, but there will still be plenty of flexible posts and speed humps dotting a road that draws hundreds of cyclists every day.

And Camillien-Houde Way will be closed to cars every Sunday morning so athletes can power up and down the hill without fear of encountering vehicles. 

Mayor Valérie Plante's administration has been striving to make Mount Royal safer ever since 18-year-old cyclist Clément Ouimet was fatally struck on Camillien-Houde Way three years ago, but the city's drastic traffic-calming measures have drawn plenty of backlash from motorists.

This summer's plan appears to be a compromise, allowing vehicles to cut through the park while installing various measures to keep cyclists safe.

But Vélo Québec's Magali Bebronne said keeping Camillien Houde Way and Remembrance Road open to through traffic creates an unnecessary conflict between cyclists and cars.

"We're not meaning to cut anyone's access to the mountain, but we don't see why it should be used as a shortcut for people looking to go east to west or west to east," she said.

"It's just mathematics. At the end of the day, the more vehicles you have, the more chance you have for crashes."

Motorists bemoans new plan

While Bebronne says the city is still doing too little, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce resident Michael Silas says it's still doing too much. 

"The reality is it's one more step toward closing this road permanently, which is what they wanted to do for the longest time," he said. 

Silas, who uses the scenic shortcut to get to work in the Plateau, was a key player against Montreal's decision to close the route to through traffic in the summer of 2018.

The Office de consultation publique de Montréal (OCPM) eventually recommended the roadway stay open.

Closing to cars every Sunday

Plante agreed to keep it open, but her administration ensured driving over the mountain was much slower than usual last summer.

However, not all of those traffic-calming measures will stay in place. For example, the city announced Tuesday that the alternating one-way near the summit will not be reinstalled as the results "were not conclusive in terms of safety."

Instead, Montreal will again line the shoulder and middle of Camillien-Houde Way with the reflective bollards, preventing illegal U-turns and providing a safe buffer between cyclists and traffic, the city says.

The speed limit through the park will also be reduced, and Mount-Royal Avenue will be narrowed to a single lane near the Camillien-Houde Way intersection.

And from July 5 to Sept. 27, cyclists, pedestrians and other athletes will have free reign on Camillien-Houde Way every Sunday morning, 7:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. 

During that period, access to the mountain and cemetery will be maintained as vehicles can still use Remembrance Road on the western side of Mount Royal. There will also be a free shuttle service from Laurier Metro station.

Cyclists keep climbing the hill

Despite Ouimet's death in 2017, cyclists like Jean Paré are still drawn to the mountain as it is the only place to train on a steep slope in the area.

He climbs Camillien-Houde Way about 700 times per year, and while he feels this summer's plan is a good start, he said the city could do more.

For example, working to better enforce the reduced speed limit would be a key step to making the road safer for everybody, he said.

"My feeling is that there's a need for more people to die here before something actually gets done seriously, sadly," Paré said. "I feel, on this road, a lot of stuff could be done to make cyclists' lives better."