Canada/Francis-McCrea and Laure-Conan streets to be paved

Sherbrooke's elected officials have voted in favor of a temporary solution to alleviate maintenance problems on Francis-McCrea and Laure-Conan streets. The sections will be covered with a layer of recycled asphalt, which should help reduce their deterioration while also reducing dust in the area.

Many citizens have complained about traffic problems in this area of the McCrea Plateau. A petition was launched to ask the city to take action (new window).

Elected officials allocated $70,000 for the work. The Carrefour district councillor is delighted.

I'm really happy that we can finally find solutions for these streets. From the moment we opened rue Laure-Conan towards rue Francis-McCrea, it became one of the main entrances and exits in a very dense district.

A quote from Fernanda Luz, Carrefour district city councillor

When we decided to postpone the work to double Lionel-Groulx boulevard, we thought we'd try to manage traffic by sending people onto roads that weren't designed for it. With the number of vehicles we send there, we have to be consistent. We're talking about a minimal amount to keep the road circulating for the thousands of vehicles," adds Geneviève Laroche.

Work needed every week

Since June 2024, teams from the City of Sherbrooke have had to intervene every week on these two sections to level the surface, treat potholes and limit the dust caused by sustained road traffic throughout the year. As current maintenance is insufficient to remedy the situation, an alternative solution must be considered, states the decision summary tabled at City Council.

If we don't move forward, we'll be forcing our crews to constantly deal with a street that isn't designed to handle this kind of traffic. We're not saying that we're urbanizing the street, we're just putting a temporary layer of asphalt on it until the permanent project sees the light of day," explains Mayor Évelyne Beaudin.

A close vote

Eight elected representatives voted in favor of the resolution, while six councillors dissented. The latter were particularly critical of the fact that these streets were being prioritized to the detriment of others, which are also in a sorry state of repair.

It's going to go right in front of all the streets in our city that are in dire need of love!

A quote from Nancy Robichaud, municipal councillor, Lac-Magog district

We all have petitions. We can work with petitions in Sherbrooke, but it has to be equal for everyone. How far will it go? says Danielle Berthold.

We're all being solicited, and it's hard to understand the path this complaint has taken in relation to all the other complaints we receive," says Annie Godbout.

Why isn't it the private developer who makes the street, as in all street extensions? There's a mechanism in place. Normally, when a street is opened, the people who live on either side pay for the infrastructure. Why isn't that happening in this case? she continues.

The mayor of Sherbrooke feels that some elected officials are mixing up a lot of things. She asserts that this is a special situation.

There are no other streets like Francis-McCrea and Laure-Conan within the urban perimeter, with this daily flow, which are dirt roads and not urbanized, and which need this intervention," she asserts.

The current situation is temporary because the developer has not yet transferred the street to the city. Eventually, when the development goes ahead, the street will be urbanized, completed and handed over to the city. But we know that this will take several years," says Évelyne Beaudin.

According to the Service de l'entretien des infrastructures, this solution only partially solves the maintenance problem. The type of surface chosen is sensitive to freeze-thaw cycles. Potholes are therefore likely to reappear during the winter season.

Source: ici.radio-canada.ca/