This is the view of the MRC of Memphrémagog, which includes this change in the route of the route verte in the area of the canton of Hatley and the village of North Hatley among the intervention priorities of its Bicycle Master Plan 2022-2030, which is supported in its vision of Vélo Québec.
But even if it has been mentioned a few times in the past, this change doesn’t go through like a letter in the post in North Hatley.
After it was rejected by a majority of city councilors at a public meeting in early August, it has fueled discussion in the village ever since.
On the other bank of the Massawippi
On the one hand, advocates for change believe cyclists are no longer safe on the shoulders of Route 108, also known as Chemin de Capelton. We are talking about about a kilometer of designated road on a busy road that connects the village center with the Massawippi axis, which is part of the City of Sherbrooke’s Grandes Fourches network. The roadway is narrow, there are shafts and piles of gravel, and up to 400 vehicles per hour can pass during rush hour.
The alternative is to get cyclists to ride on the other bank of the Massawippi by crossing the North Hatley Dam via Chemin Vaughan and taking a route that would need to be upgraded via Chemin de la Rivière and Rue Laprise and Veterans.
In the status quo camp, we particularly regret that part of this alternative route runs on private property, that we did not provide information about the traffic and speed of cyclists that would cross a residential neighborhood, and that we did not consult these taxpayers.
“The councilors who were not in favor took into account the points mentioned and concluded that this project was not in the best interest of our village,” state councilors Carrol Haller, Danielle Dupré, Elizabeth Fee and Andrew J Pelletier in a joint release , which was published on the Friends of North Hatley website.
“We are concerned that the influx of large numbers of cyclists towards the city center poses a significant safety risk,” they add, saying that they advocate “dialogue with the MRC and Vélo Québec on ways to improve” the section via Route 108 leads.
Supports
Mayor Marcella Davis Gerrish and City Councilor Michel Desrosiers spoke in favor of the new route.
They have the support of several citizens, including Jacques Campbell, a former mayor of North Hatley, and Michael Grayson, who, as a former cycle path planner, remembers that the Chemin de la Rivière option was advocated 30 years ago without anyone taking notice They would have made an effort to study it seriously.
Mr Grayson today believes the North Hatley council was clumsy in bringing the issue to the agenda without further preparation. And he hopes the council will remedy the situation by at least agreeing to commission a study comparing the two scenarios.
“It’s so obvious to me that this is the best option [par le chemin de la Rivière], he says. It’s black and white. Current shoulders [sur la 108] are inadequate. “It’s an accident that will happen one day, and it’s surprising it hasn’t happened yet.”
In the parish of Hatley
In the canton of Hatley, the MRC proposal has not yet been presented, let alone debated in the local council, emphasizes Mayor Vincent Fontaine.
At first glance, however, he says he supports the idea as long as the changes are funded from the MRC’s cycling budget or the route verte.
In the Hatley parish area, the route change would mainly consist of reaching an agreement with an owner for a right of way to connect Chemin Vaughan and Chemin de la Rivière.
Some fear that expropriation will be necessary to pass this place, but Mr. Fontaine believes that this would not be necessary since the municipality already owns land along the river.
According to him, there might be a strip one or two meters wide and 100 meters long that could be purchased in an agricultural setting.
“This is not an expropriation of a house. We’re talking about reclaiming land to increase our footprint along the river. It would be a symbolic expropriation because this land is not being used.”
— Vincent Fontaine, Mayor of Hatley Canton
“But we are not there yet,” adds Mayor Fontaine.
Until death
Given the widespread backlash the rejection of the new route generated, North Hatley Town Council invited residents to come and speak directly with elected officials during their monthly work session in late August.
However, the exercise did not change the position of the elected officials, said Mayor Gerrish, who declined to return to the topic in an interview with La Tribune.
In her email, she limited herself to clarifying that nothing further would be done on the matter “unless the municipality decides to move forward with the project. In this case, North Hatley Town Council may decide whether to reconsider the application.”
“The proposed road and the request made to North Hatley was [prématurées] “Considering that the majority of the work is in the canton, it is by no means necessary to require this from our community,” adds Ms. Gerrish.
“As far as the rumors about widening Capelton Road are concerned, it is a numbered road and the MTQ (Ministry of Transport) has made it very clear that if anyone wants to widen this road, they will be allowed to do the work but not in any way “I would contribute financially whatever,” she also emphasized.
Finally, note that since early May, the MTQ has agreed to reduce the speed in the village of North Hatley to 30 km/h on an approximately 350 meter section of Route 108 on both sides of the main road.
This change is intended to ensure the safety of road users, cyclists and pedestrians and will remain in force until the end of the tourist season on October 31st. The ministry is also carrying out a pilot project to install extended speed bumps at the level of the two pedestrian crossings in this sector.