Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante said that snow removal needs to prioritize clearing the sidewalks rather than the roads on Monday.
At a press conference, Plante explained how snow reform is necessary to enhance the “quality of the pedestrian experience.”
However, the official Opposition is concerned about the impact these changes will have towards the speed of clearing snow throughout the entire city.
Plante’s administration proposed to the municipal council their plan for the next 10 years in terms of snow removal, which includes larger territories than before, stricter sidewalk de-icing standards and less power to local districts.
Earlier this month, Aref Salem, the leader of Ensemble Montréal, criticized Project Montréal.
“I never thought I’d see a city administration asking for snow clearing to take longer,” he said at a press conference. “With all these service cutbacks, Montrealers have every right to wonder just what is the purpose of the record 4.9 per cent tax increase recently imposed on them.”
Additionally, boroughs will be limited to one local clearing operation per year rather than two and will have to pay for it and obtain permission from the city to initiate it.