A busy intersection in Montreal was lined with demonstrators on Monday evening lying down on the road next to their bikes during rush hour.
Organizers called it a “die-in” — where participants lie on the ground to symbolize cyclists killed in collisions.
This comes just after a 31-year-old woman was killed in a collision with a truck while riding her bike in Montreal’s Plateau-Mont-Royal borough on Sunday.
Police say the collision happened on Parc Avenue, just north of Bernard Street West. The woman was rushed to hospital in critical condition, but later died of her injuries.
Demonstrator Oli Jasmine says cyclist and pedestrian safety should be a priority in Montreal.
“I live around here. I pass here every day. I am scared all the time,” said Jasmine.
“There’s no proper bike paths unless you do a 30-minute detour.”
Vélorution Montréal, a group that pushes back against car-centric culture, organized the demonstration at the intersection “to call out political inaction that puts lives at risk.”
‘It could have been all of us,’ says participant
Organizations have been asking for safer infrastructure on Parc Avenue for the past 50 years, says Séverine Le Page, spokesperson for Vélorution Montréal.
“The whole street is very dangerous.”
Some participants taking part in the demonstration drew chalk lines around their body. (Natalia Weichsel/CBC)
She cited the 50 km/h speed limit on a thoroughfare lined with dense housing, businesses and industry.
As the most accessible north-south route, it’s heavily travelled by cyclists, she noted.
Parc Avenue also features abundant parking, which makes it even more hazardous for riders as drivers pull in and out or open doors, she said.
The intersection of Parc Avenue and Saint-Viateur Street was where the first ghost bike, painted white, was installed in 2013. That’s where Suzanne Châtelain, 55, died while riding her bike. Vélo fantôme Montréal was founded after her death, which occurred when a car door was opened into her path, Le Page recounted.
Earlier in the day on Monday, Mayor Valérie Plante opened a news conference with a moment of silence to honour the 31-year-old cyclist killed on Parc Avenue, before announcing the naming of a bike path on Saint-Denis Street after cycling advocate Robert “Bicycle Bob” Silverman.
Vélorution Montréal organizers and other advocates spoke about bike safety while participants gathered on Parc Avenue Monday. (Natalia Weichsel/CBC)
Following the announcement, a mass of participants departed from the intersection of Saint-Denis Street and Duluth Avenue, heading to the site of the die-in.
Among the participants was Olive Kartal.
As someone who bikes everyday, she said she was shocked by the news of the cyclist’s death and it got her thinking of all the dangerous moves she has seen drivers make while riding her bike.Â
“It could have been all of us. It could have been your daughter. Your sister. It’s very upsetting to think that could be any of us unless these infrastructures are made safer,” said Kartal.
Vélo Québec program manager Magali Bebronne said her organization is constantly reminding officials of areas that need improved cycling infrastructure, including Parc Avenue, where she says mulitple people have died within the last 10 years on foot or by bike.
“It really calls for some political action, to pacify this avenue and make it safe for everyone,” she said, citing the neighbourhood’s high density and bustling foot and bike traffic.
“We almost have a highway in the middle of a living neighbourhood.”