Cte Saint-Luc wants train station, better infrastructure to deal with Royalmount traffic

The City of Cte Saint-Luc says it wants measures in place including a new train station and improved roads to prevent the new Royalmount mall project from increasingcongestion along the Dcarie Expressway and adjacent Dcarie Boulevard.

Representatives from the cityare presenting today at a public consultation into the project at Montreal's city hall.

Presenting the west-end city's case today at a public consulation at Montreal's city hall, Cte Saint-Luc MayorMitchell Brownstein said his city's requests are reasonable.

"We're asking for small things a train station on a line that exists is a small request," he said.

Thedevelopment project, at the intersection of Highway 40 and 15, will span an area larger than 40 football fields and feature restaurants, entertainment venues, office space, residential units, a hotel and plenty of stores.

It was approved by the Town of Mount Royal.

Cte Saint-Luc has nine recommendations on how to improve transportation, given the expected increase in traffic.

Those include:

• Createa transportation plan and strategy with affected cities, transport agencies and developers.
• Require developers to implement transportation demand management measures when creating new developments.
• Add a train station along the Saint-Jerome line at Dcarie and Jean-Talon, and connect it to the Namur Metro station.
• Add direct access to the impending Rseau express mtropolitain (REM) trains by rapid bus and by extending the Orange Metro line to the REM at Bois Franc.
• Improve overpasses, underpasses, level crossings to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians.

The boroughs of Cte-des-NeigesNotre-Dame-de-Grce and Saint-Laurent will also be presenting at this evening's hearings.

Sue Montgomery, the mayor of CDN-NDG, is opposed to the project, calling it a throwback to the 1970s and 80s.

"It's a project from another era," she said, "sovery car-centric, and it's just going to end up adding more traffic to the Decarie interchange."

The project's promoter, Carbonleo, has already begun work preparing the site, with the permission of the Town of Mount Royal.

In a statement,Carbonleo said it has already met with representatives from Cte Saint-Luc.

The company is "looking to help improve public transit and active transportation in this sector by proposing various installations, such as a suspended walkway for which it will assume costs to reach the De La Savanne Metro station."