Montreal promises to complete school-zone safety projects by year’s end

The City of Montreal is vowing to complete more than a dozen projects by the end of the year with the goal of making the city’s school zones safer for pedestrians.

The city says 30 projects in 11 boroughs will be completed by the end of 2023 as part of the “Safety Around Schools” program (Programme de sécurisation aux abords des écoles). The total price tag is $10 million.

Of those 30 projects, the city says a dozen have already been completed. The remainder are expected to be finalized this year.

The city estimates the program completed 69 projects between 2020 – when the program was launched – and 2022.

Some of this year’s projects include:

• Two weekly enforcement operations in accident-prone areas and school zones;
• Prevention tips and safety videos shared on social networks;
• Distribution of awareness tools near schools;
• Awareness posters at school drop-off points and at a school’s main entrance

FILE – Montreal school zone in September 2023. (Martin Daigle, CityNews)

The City of Montreal is also launching a consultation Oct. 25 to put forward proposals directly related to safety issues around elementary and high schools.

Speeding in school zones across Quebec was a major issue last year, according to regional police officers. At least 37,000 tickets were handed out to motorists for non-compliance with road safety in school zones in 2022.

Only statements of offence issued during targeted operations were part of the data, meaning it doesn’t encompass all fines handed out by municipal police forces.

In one high-profile incident in Montreal, a seven-year-old was fatally struck in the Ville-Marie borough in December 2022. The child had just come to Canada two months prior, fleeing the war in Ukraine with her family.

WATCH: Quebec government unveils five-year plan to increase road safety

Earlier this year the Quebec government said it was introducing 27 new road-safety measures by 2028, with a focus on school zones and road work sites.

The plan would place a 30 km/h speed limit on most school zones in Quebec, with some exceptions. It would also dedicate an additional $68 million for municipalities to develop safer school zones.

The province says it will install radar cameras at school zones and road work sites.