Abstract Manager

Since 2020, the City of Montreal has implemented large-scale temporary and permanent street reallocation projects to modify the way that Montrealers and visitors experience and move around the city. Not only have these projects changed the way that people navigate their city, but they have also been creative solutions to economic challenges and supported recovery and resilience. One of these projects - the Reseau Express du Velo (REV, or Express Bike Network) –  is an all-season network of permanent, physically-protected AAA bicycle paths throughout Montreal. On rue Saint Denis -  a critical North-South corridor in Montreal -  the REV showcases features like island bus stops, bicycle signaling, pocket turning lanes, and prioritized winter maintenance. The second project – Montreal’s pedestrian streets – was originally a response to pandemic mobility needs. It was so successful that it received funding for an additional 4 summers. The City of Montreal and business associations collaborated to transform more than 10 commercial arterials into pedestrian and bicycle corridors, as well as unique public spaces, for the duration of summer.  

The City of Montreal’s Department of Economic Development hired Eco-Counter, a global leader in active transportation data solutions, to measure and evaluate how the new facilities are used by the public and how this use has changed over time. Before and after studies were conducted using temporary and permanent automated counters on rue Saint Denis, and 25 people counters were deployed during the pedestrian street months. Eco-Counter first cleaned the data, and then analysed the results to demonstrate that cycling rates have more than doubled on Saint Denis, and the explosion of pedestrian street users immediately decrease by 30-50% the moment the street returns to car usage.  

Bold projects like these are transforming how road space can be used, either temporarily or permanently, as well as demonstrating how active transportation projects can be a solution to economic challenges. By integrating automated counters into these projects, it produces a simple dataset that can be efficiently used to inform, evaluate, and communicate success. Cities like Montreal are collaborating between city departments, with business associations, and with vendors and consultants to work toward collective, evidence-based decisions.