Retain car access on Mount Royal, Montreal consultation bureau says. Report recommends "a recreational road that people would use because it is a pleasant drive, and not as a shortcut."

Cars should be allowed to cross Mount Royal, Montreal’s consultation bureau recommends in a report that  is sharply critical of last summer’s pilot project banning through traffic on the mountain.

But Remembrance Rd. and Camillien-Houde Way should be transformed into a slow moving, tree-lined scenic drive “to enhance the Mount Royal experience and the discovery of its landscape, natural and cultural heritage, while reducing and discouraging through traffic,” the Office de consultation publique de Montréal says in a 110-page report released Thursday.

“In other words, (it would be) a road that people would use because it is a pleasant drive, and not as a shortcut,” it says.

It also recommends reducing parking, making it safe for cyclists, pedestrians and drivers to share the road and improving public transit to the mountain.

The pilot project from June 2 to Oct. 31 polarized Montrealers and did not produce conclusive results “in terms of access to the mountain, the user experience and safety improvement,” the report says.

“Consequently, the commission recommends that automobile circulation be maintained throughout the Camillien-Houde/Remembrance axis, while planning the latter’s redevelopment as a recreational road,” it states.

Mayor Valérie Plante said she had taken note of the report and that as she promised in December, she would follow its recommendations.

“I want to confirm to you that we intend to follow the recommendations of the OCPM,” she said at a press conference at city hall.

“Camillien-Houde will become a recreational road that will be safe for all users,” she added.

The city will install temporary measures this summer to improve safety, but the long-term transformation of Camillien-Houde and Remembrance Rd. will not get underway until next year, she said.

This year’s plan for the mountain artery will be announced in the coming weeks, said Plante, who hinted that reducing speed, preventing illegal U-turns and reducing the number of cars could be among the measures to be implemented.

While Plante promised to respect the OCPM’s recommendations, she defended the pilot project, saying that by reducing the number of cars last summer by 75 per cent on weekdays and 25 per cent on weekends, it made the mountain safer for other users. She added that temporary installations set up during the pilot project, including a café at the Camillien-Houde lookout, were popular.

However, the report notes that reducing traffic on the mountain increased congestion on other nearby arteries.

It also gives mixed reviews to temporary installations like the Café suspendu and belvédère Soleil.

The Café suspendu was popular but many people pointed out it blocked the spectacular view, while the location of the belvédère Soleil caused safety risks because of conflicts between drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, it says.

In responding to the report, Plante acknowledged that she regretted the way the pilot project was announced.

“I wish the communication would have been different,” she said.

“The idea was out but it took a few weeks before (the city was able to say) ‘This is how it’s going to look’,” said Plante, who charged that speculation and false information circulated after news of the project broke.

Notably absent from the press conference was Plateau Mont Royal borough mayor Luc Ferrandez, responsible for large parks, whose off-the-cuff announcement of the pilot project in February 2018 generated instant controversy. More than 35,000 people signed an online petition against it, while 8,000 endorsed one in favour.

Youssef Amane, a spokesperson for the executive committee, said Ferrandez was not there because the issue is not his responsibility but rather Plante’s, since she is in charge of Mount Royal.

Ferrandez had also been responsible for large projects until March 29, when Plante reshuffled the executive committee, but Amane said his loss of that dossier had no bearing on his absence, since the pilot project was not considered a large project.

Opposition leader Lionel Perez said the report proves the pilot project was misguided from the start and that the city could easily have introduced safety measures, like reducing the speed limit, without the divisive experiment.

“Following the report of the OCPM, we can observe and confirm what we’ve been saying from the very beginning: that this pilot project has been a complete and utter fiasco,” he said.

The OCPM’s consultations, held from May 10 to Dec. 4, drew record participation, with more than 13,000 people taking part either online or in person. It received almost 2,000 written and oral opinions from groups and individuals, the highest number to date. Another 3,000 people filled out online questionnaires.

“The analysis of opinions received attests to Montrealers’ attachment to the mountain and its landscapes, and to the fact that many people are willing to collectively reflect on its future to achieve better cohabitation among the various users,” OCPM president Dominique Ollivier said.

While noting the lack of consensus over the pilot project, Ollivier writes in her introductory letter that it did have one positive side: it and the public consultation that followed “stimulated debate and then they encouraged reflection and helped lead to a compromise.”

The OCPM recommends narrowing Camillien-Houde Way and Remembrance Rd. to slow traffic and deter their use as a crosstown artery. To enhance the roads’ scenic character, trees and greenery should be added and concrete barriers replaced with natural landscaping, it says.

They must also be redesigned so pedestrians, cyclists and motor vehicles may share them safely, it says. The size of the parking lot at Smith House should be reduced and surrounded with plantings, in keeping with the mountain’s bucolic environment, it suggests.

Distinctive signage reflecting Mount Royal’s character as a heritage site should be introduced and the two roads should be integrated into the park rather than being part of the city’s road network, with some type of ornamental gates at both entrances, so drivers realize they are entering a park, it recommends.