SRB and REV on Henri-Bourassa | A first segment of the project sees the light of day

A first section of the future “sustainable mobility corridor” was put into service this Tuesday on Boulevard-Henri-Bourassa, in Montreal. The project, contested by many, must ultimately combine a rapid bus service (SRB) and an express bicycle network (REV) over 18 kilometers.

The news, first mentioned Monday evening at the municipal council, was confirmed Tuesday by the City of Montreal. Since last July, there have been numerous workers and problems at work on this first section of work of more than 2 kilometers, between avenue Marcelin-Wilson and rue Lajeunesse.

As will be the case with all the others in the long term, this segment of the boulevard has gone from four to two automobile lanes per direction. A dedicated BRT bus lane is now in place on this section in both directions, with universally accessible bus platforms at each stop.

However, unlike the Pie-IX SRB, Henri-Bourassa’s future SRB will be “light”, in the sense that it will have no physical footprint on the track.

A protected unidirectional cycle path, part of the REV, has been created in both directions. Montreal says it took the opportunity to secure several intersections by building “refuge zones for pedestrians”, in addition to upgrading certain traffic lights.

Permanent improvements to the second section – between rue Lajeunesse and boulevard Saint-Laurent – ​​must be done next spring. The City wants to have completed this entire “sustainable mobility corridor” on Boulevard Henri-Bourassa, which will be 18 kilometers between Highway 13 and Boulevard Lacordaire, by 2027. The project will cross three boroughs. By 2026, the work should have been carried out between avenue Marcel-Wilson and rue des Récollets.

Possible delays, opposition

However, delays in the work are not impossible, warned Monday evening the advisor associated with the executive committee, Marianne Giguère.

“There may be deadlines, timetables that shift when we plan so far in advance, but that does not prevent our objective from being to achieve it as quickly as possible,” she said, in response to questions of a citizen.

Since its launch, the Henri-Bourrassa Boulevard transformation project has not only made people happy. A petition asking the City to reconsider its intentions has collected thousands of signatures, both from residents and business owners, over the past year.

“We feel like selling everything and crowning our camp. All we asked was to review the project, take a break and consult with us to keep certain parking spaces. The City never listened to us,” said last summer the owner of the Salaison St-André butcher shop, André Savoie, one of the instigators of the commercial mobilization.

“There are several businesses that have closed since you announced the project. Have you thought about that? Here, in the neighborhood, everyone is against it,” said a disgruntled trader during a visit to the construction site. The Presslast summer.