Ville-Marie Expressway rooftop park construction begins next spring

Construction gets underway next year to cover a stretch of the Ville-Marie Expressway.

Workers will begin on the 125-metresection betweenHtel-de-Ville Avenueand SanguinetStreet next spring.

The project is expected to cost the Quebec government less than $100million.

The city will then build a park on top of the expressway for roughly $31million.

Link between Old Montreal and downtown

The plan wasunveiled Monday by Quebec Transport Minister RobertPoeti.

Poeti said the green space is intended to provide some verdant relief to the area for the French CHUMsuperhospitaland eliminate a barrier between Old Montreal and downtown.

He said the work will make the area safer for drivers andmore welcoming for pedestrians.

Montreal motorists, however,will be losing a familiar route as theSanguinetoff-ramp from the Ville-Marie Expressway east will be destroyed.

The Saint-Laurent/St-Denis highwayexit will remain open, but the fork in the road will be eliminated andall vehicles will be forcedto turn onto St-Denis Street.

St-Deniswill be altered to accept the new vehicular volume,astwo lanes of cars will be permitted to turn left.

'Surrounded by highways':ProjetMontral

A member of the opposition Projet Montreal party expressed doubts about the plan.

"We're stunned by what was presented this morning," said Valrie PlanteofProjetMontral.

"It doesn't fill the main purpose, the objective of covering the Ville-Marie is to make a public space to make it accessible from one place to the other."

She noted that there will still be major traffic to navigate for those who want to continue through the park toOld Montreal.

"It will still be surrounded by highways," said Plante.

For his part,Poeti saidthe closure of the Sanguinet ramp might represent a small inconvenience to some motorists but also noted thatfewer cars might be on city roads in the future.

"The key to havingless cars in big cities is public transit. We are workinghard together to improve public transit and the answer is to give alternative to the citizens," he said.