Montreal wants to reduce the number of “ghost sites” and proposes to impose tighter deadlines for the installation and dismantling of signage on work sites. She also suggests replacing the orange cones with smaller bollards when the situation allows. These proposals are on the menu of discussions taking place on Thursday as part of the Summit on construction sites organized by the City.
“Having so many construction sites demonstrates economic dynamism and the importance of upgrading our infrastructures,” said Mayor Valérie Plante in her opening speech Thursday morning at the Science Center. “But the problem is not the construction sites as such, but everything that surrounds the construction sites: the cones, the obstacles, the communication with the partners, with the citizens, the boroughs and the City. »
The City, which wishes to improve its practices and better coordinate the work on its territory, has summoned partners — including real estate developers, contractors and experts — to a summit in order to find solutions to the many problems caused by construction sites in Montreal.
In order to launch the discussions, the City formulated a series of proposals.
Better coaching
One of them aims to impose a maximum deadline of 12 hours on contractors and work providers for the installation and dismantling of worksite signage in order to free public roads and obstructed sidewalks more quickly. “If a borough gives a five-day permit, it’s not normal to see a sidewalk blocked for three weeks,” said the mayor.
Certain construction sites must sometimes be suspended for various reasons, including a delay in the delivery of equipment, but the City plans to grant more powers to the Mobility Squad so that it can, if it deems it appropriate, withdraw the permit to occupy the public domain after two unjustified notices of inactivity. The value of the statements of offense issued by the Mobility Squad could also be increased, suggests the City.
Montreal already has a platform called AGIR (Assistant in the management of street interventions) which brings together all the permits for the occupation of the public domain in the territory. But this is not enough.
The City therefore intends to require site managers to produce a traffic maintenance plan as a condition for obtaining a permit on arteries deemed to be priorities. This plan will be analyzed by the city center, and not only by the boroughs, specified the mayor.
Orphan orange cones
Finally, the orange cones are omnipresent in the streets of the metropolis, but they are not all essential, estimates the City. Montréal would therefore like to agree with the Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable du Québec (MTMD) on solutions to better adapt road signs to the urban context of the metropolis.
It regularly happens that orphan cones are abandoned on the public domain without anyone knowing to whom they belong. “The Mobility Squad performs orange cone and sign collection blitzes on a regular basis throughout the city of Montreal. There are approximately 3,000 orange cones and panels that are picked up each year by the Mobility Squad,” explained Mayor Plante.
Smaller bollards could, for example, replace these orange cones, suggests the City. The number of these cones could also be reduced. In addition, signaling equipment, including orange cones, could be identified using a chip or a QR code to find their owner more easily.
Mayor Plante wanted to send a clear message to summit participants. “Today is not a parlor conversation. We are not here to have tea and say how everything is going well, ”she warned. “We’re here to find solutions to show Montrealers that we care about the appearance of our streets and construction sites. »
In 2022, some 55,000 permits were issued for the occupation of the public domain on the territory of Montreal, including 42% for the City’s construction sites, 34% for private projects and 20% for public utility companies, a explained Nathalie Martel, director of the road network infrastructure department of the City of Montreal.
At the end of the workshops and discussions that are taking place throughout the day, Émilie Thuillier, responsible for infrastructure, buildings and asset maintenance on the executive committee, will provide an update on the work at the end of the afternoon at the of a press scrum.