Montreal West parents want crossing guard back at troubled intersection near school

Parents of students at a Montreal West high school are urging police to bring back a crossing guard to an intersection that’s been the source of concerns after collisions in recent years. The corner of Ainslie Road and Westminster Avenue is a commonly-used path by students of Royal West Academy. “It is very frustrating. I feel we have gone a step backwards from where we were last year,” said Joanna Duy, the chair of the Royal West Parent Safety Subcommittee. In the past two years, three students from the school have been struck by vehicles and injured at the intersection. Back in April, Montreal police stationed a crossing guard at the roadway. It was in place until the end of the school year. The guard was temporarily assigned with the expectation the municipality of Montreal West would be making changes, including reducing the number of lanes from four to two, according to the subcommittee. The work was to take place during this past summer, along with road changes at the nearby level train crossing. Story continues below advertisement That hasn’t happened yet. When the school year ended, the guard was no longer in place, but the subcommittee went to the Montreal Agglomeration Council to ask for the crossing guard to return this school year. Get daily Ottawa news Get daily Ottawa news delivered to your inbox so you'll never miss the day's top stories. BY PROVIDING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS, YOU HAVE READ AND AGREE TO GLOBAL NEWS' TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY. A pilot project is underway to narrow the roadway, and remove left-hand turns to make the area safer. 2:03 Parents demand crossing guard at dangerous intersection Stick to the Facts Add Global News as a Preferred Source on Google to see more of our stories in your search results. “With these improvements, we really think that this will be some kind of calming measures and that there will be more space for kids to cross safely,” said Montreal West Mayor Jonathan Cha. Though improvements are on the way, parents and advocates say a crossing guard would still be important to have. Duy said as the intersection changes, driver frustration could increase and create more concerns. Story continues below advertisement “We are asking for a school crossing guard for one other year. That would give the city the chance to make the improvements that it wants to make, but also to give the time for the dust to settle a little bit,” said Duy. MORE ON CANADA MORE VIDEOS ‘Keep human culture…