Royal West parents demand reinstatement of crossing guard on Westminster Ave.

MONTREAL NEWS Royal West parents demand reinstatement of crossing guard on Westminster Ave. Say the intersection of Ainslie St. and Westminster Ave. is particularly prone to conflicts. A car fails to stop at the crosswalk for Royal West Academy staff attempting to cross at the intersection of Westminster Ave. and Ainslie St. in Montreal on Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026. (Allen McInnis / Montreal Gazette) By Jason Magder September 2, 2026 at 3:41 p.m. Last Updated: September 2, 2026 at 4:18 p.m. It took three students getting hit by cars and two years of lobbying before a crossing guard was finally assigned to a dangerous Montreal West intersection last April. But when classes resumed Tuesday at Royal West Academy, that crossing guard had been reassigned to another school. Parents say the intersection of Ainslie St. and Westminster Ave. is particularly prone to conflicts because is situated a block away from a busy level crossing serving Exo’s Vaudreuil-Hudson, Candiac and St-Jérôme lines and any other trains needing repairs at Exo’s Lachine-based maintenance garage. It is also often clogged with cars travelling between the West End and Highway 20. Aside from the two students hit, several people have also been struck by trains in the area, including one person who was killed. “Something really has to change,” said Eric Lamoureux, the president of the Royal West Academy governing board. “Our street is very dangerous. With the added measure of the train tracks adding to the frustration level of drivers, by the time they go another half block get to our intersection, sometimes they just don’t wait.” Parents and students of Royal West Academy now feel they are back to square one, with no crossing guard and no other considerable improvements to the safety of the intersection. EDITOR’S PICKS Montreal West keeps Westminster train crossing study private as residents call for transparency Montreal West announces Westminster Ave. S. will be closed for three weeks Montreal West changes course, will release traffic study after safety work at Westminster train crossing Westminster Ave. crossing in Montreal West is a problem that seems to have no owner “It’s not an acceptable answer when the safety of kids is at risk,” Edna de Paz said. Her daughter, Sofia Milbrandt, was propelled into the air after she and a friend were struck by a car this year at the intersection. Her friend hit her head and suffered headaches for several days afterward, de Paz said. Milbrandt…