Ville-Marie announces new measures for pedestrian safety months after girl killed

New measures to make residential streets safter for pedestrians were introduced Thursday in the borough of Ville-Marie. This comes months after seven-year-old, Mariia Legenkovska a Ukrainian refugee was killed in a hit-and-run while walking to school.

A small shrine for the seven-year-old Ukrainian girl who was fatally struck by a vehicle in Montreal. (Credit: CityNews/Alyssia Rubertucci)

The plan includes the closing of streets and the re-orientation of traffic – Fullum, Parthenais, de Rouen, Peel, Hope and Sussex streets will change direction or be converted into one-way streets, while Saint-Christophe, Berthier, Sainte-Rose, du Square-Amherst streets and Clark Street near the intersection of Maisonneuve Boulevard will be redeveloped.

Ville-Marie Borough introduces new safety measures for pedestrians month’s after seven-year-old Mariia Legenkovska was killed in a hit-and-run while walking to school. (CREDIT: Martin Daigle, CityNews Image)

“We are proud to accelerate neighborhood safety, which will benefit residents and visitors, as well as future generations. We are firmly committed to doing more and faster to make pedestrian travel safer,” says Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante.

110 new permanent speed bumps will also be distributed throughout the borough, with hope that it will reduce the speed of motorists.

For school zones, the borough says additional measures will be deployed to ensure the safety of pedestrians, which may include more signs, road markings and street closures.

Sophie Mauzerolle, city councilor for the district of Sainte-Marie also responsible for transport and mobility on the executive committee says she is confident the new measures will have a significant impact, “…particularly in the Centre-Sud district, so that our residential streets are no longer considered shortcuts.”