The cycle path to the CHUS will not be finished in 2020
Cyclists will have to wait until next year to use a new cycle path to CHUS-Fleurimont.
Share September 9, 2020 8:35 p.m. Share The cycle path to the CHUS will not be finished in 2020
Jonathan Custeau La Tribune No, cyclists will not be able to go to CHUS-Fleurimont on a new cycle path in 2020. While it is still possible that construction work on the expected cycle path on 12th Avenue will begin this fall , it is unlikely that it will be possible to complete them this year.
Citizen Marie-Christine Milot had sent questions on this subject to city council on Tuesday, but no one was able to offer an update on the site which was yet to be the subject of a resolution in August or in September. Caroline Gravel, director of the Urban Infrastructure Department at the City of Sherbrooke, provided an update on Wednesday.
Ms. Milot not understanding why we had announced the construction of the bike path from July, at the beginning of the year, to then postpone it until the fall.
“In 2020, knowing the importance of cardiovascular health and eco-responsibility, no sidewalks or cycle paths join one of the most important centers of work, services and studies in our city,” she lamented.
She recalled that citizens have shown interest in building a sidewalk and a safe bicycle path to the hospital center in 2011 and that a petition with more than 1,000 names was filed in 2015. She was also concerned. that the City lose the subsidy that was granted to it for these improvements.
“For the subsidy, we can reassure people. It will always be available. We have made sure of this with the governments, ”says Ms. Gravel.
However, COVID has likely reduced the chances of the infrastructure being completed this year.
Caroline Gravel Photo La Tribune, André Vuillemin
“We went to tender later than expected due to COVID, in June. We opened for submissions in July. The prices received were too high for our budget. We didn't have the money to do this work. We had set conditions that all work be completed by 2020, ”explains Caroline Gravel.
“With the agreement of the council, we are going back to tender by lifting the conditions, that is to say that the work would start in 2020, but we are not obliged to finish this year. As we are late in the season, the contractors' notebooks are full. The objective is to open up to several bidders and have better prices. The budget is not unlimited. If the prices are still too expensive, we will have to go back to tender and postpone to 2021. “
Even if the work began this year, it would be practically impossible to finish the work before winter.
“The section is long and it belongs to the Ministry of Transport. We absolutely must obtain its authorization because we are passing over its infrastructures. For the completion of the work, we easily have ten to twelve weeks. “
Ms. Milot's questions had raised a small controversy in city council on Tuesday, since her email had eight requests while the municipal by-law limits the number of questions asked by each citizen to two. Évelyne Beaudin argued that this information was not clearly indicated on the City of Sherbrooke's site and she would have liked all of the citizen's questions to be read. No other elected official supported his approach. Only the first two questions were therefore addressed to elected officials.
Councilor Marc Denault, chairman of the sustainable mobility committee, said that this section was important and that it was necessary to ensure that it was completed. He hopes that the addition of a bicycle path on the bridge spanning Highway 610 will inspire similar work on the Jacques-Cartier Bridge in the future.
