Nearly car accident in Laval has residents calling for traffic calming measures – Montreal | The Canadian News

Tire skid marks are all that’s left on the Eliot Avenue sidewalk in Laval after a car crashed yards from home doors Thursday afternoon.

Security footage captured the shocking incident when a red SUV can be seen jumping an empty sidewalk after the driver lost control of the vehicle.

“It sounded like an accident on the highway,” resident Billy Kyriakakis said of the truck that skidded into his driveway and nearly hit his parked car and others.

“I went out and immediately thought someone was hurt.”

No one was injured in the incident, but Eliot Avenue residents say this latest accident shows how dangerous their street has been for years.

“Yesterday was an awakening,” said resident and mother Voula Kollias.

“It has lasted too long. We need to slow down the traffic, we need to put something in its place and we have tried. “

She said her husband was rear-ended recently simply backing out of their driveway.

READ MORE: Laval Street will have speed bumps after numerous complaints from residents

Observing the scene Friday morning, a handful of concerned families on Eliot Avenue told Global News that they see motorists rush past the busy residential street on a daily basis.

Lisa Di Ioia, who has lived on the avenue for 20 years, said that speeding has always been a problem and is the root of many accidents like the one on Thursday.

“There are a lot of people running down the street. We need speed bumps. We have been fighting for this for many years and we were tired, “he said.

“We don’t want an accident to happen.”

Residents say the section of Eliot Avenue between du Souvenir and Henri Duplessis street is the most dangerous.

The width of the avenue and the blind curve are just some of the dangers mentioned in the multiple complaints that residents say they have filed with the city, complaints that, they say, have been ignored.

“This accident is a perfect example of why we have to slow down traffic. It’s constant and it’s exhausting to always be afraid, ”Kollias said.

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The speed limit on the avenue, which is located near a park, is 40 kilometers per hour.

Resident Fady Akache said he and his two daughters do not use the park for fear of dangerous drivers.

“We were nervous about letting the children go out alone. We don’t let them play or even cross the street, ”Akache said.

A 2018 traffic study conducted by the city over a two-week period showed that the majority of drivers, 85 percent, were driving below 53 kilometers per hour on the street, just below the 15 kilometer threshold. in which the city would add traffic calming measures. .

In a statement, the city said they recognize the dangers in the area and that signs are already in place to curb traffic, but that traffic studies are underway in consideration of additional measures that could be implemented over the next year.