Voices are rising to demand the securing of the intersection where a car hit a stroller 10 days ago before leaving the scene without stopping, causing a stir in the Outremont borough.
Around 20 people gathered at the intersection of Bloomfield and Lajoie avenues around 11 a.m. this Saturday, to leave strollers there and sit down briefly on the public road in an effort to raise awareness of the importance of making this safer crossing point between motorists and pedestrians. The demonstrators then marched briefly continuously on the crosswalks of the intersection, blocking the passage of motorists for a few minutes.
” It went well ; motorists were patient and the atmosphere was family-like”, says Sophie Lavoie, a member of the Vélorution collective, recently created to organize mobilizations that go off the beaten track, in the hope of raising awareness among the population of the importance of a better road safety for cyclists and pedestrians.
This mobilization comes 10 days after a motorist hit a stroller at this intersection in which was a child of about one year. In a video captured by surveillance cameras and shared on social networks, the motorist can be seen continuing on his way after hitting the stroller head-on.
The mother and her child were not injured, confirmed the Montreal Police Department, which opened an investigation by its team specializing in collisions to shed light on the circumstances of this event, which has caused several elected municipal officials to react in the last few days, as well as organizations representing the Jewish community. “The accident probably shocked many people who live near the intersection,” also notes Mr.me The way.
A problematic intersection
This is not the first time that an accident involving pedestrians has occurred at this intersection. Last March, a four-year-old child suffered serious head injuries after being hit by a passing car at the same location.
” Something has to be done. It’s not normal that there have been two collisions in the same place in less than a year,” insists Mathieu Murphy-Perron, also a member of Vélorution. According to him, developments should be considered by the City to make this intersection safer, especially since it is in the middle of a residential area.
According to an analysis by The duty last year, more than a thousand pedestrians and cyclists were killed or seriously injured in a collision with a vehicle between 2012 and 2020 in Montreal. More than two thirds of these accidents also occurred at intersections in mainland France.
The investigation continues
The SPVM, for its part, is continuing its investigation into this case. Joined by Le DevoiOn Saturday, the police force confirmed that it had not yet found the suspect driver in this case. It is not known what charges he could face, if any.
Marvin Rotrand, director of the League for Human Rights within the Jewish organization B’nai Brith Canada, is closely following the progress of this investigation. According to him, the thesis of a hate crime should not be dismissed. “The Jewish community takes this very seriously. We are alarmed. It seems to be a deliberate gesture and we are very worried, ”noted Mr. Rotrand, in an interview with the To have to Saturday.
“It seems to be anti-Semitism, but we can’t confirm it,” he added.