Ahead of Royalmount mega-mall, working group will try to solve Dcarie Interchange traffic woes

The City of Montreal and government of Quebec have announced the creation of a working group, tasked with devising ideas to stave off an impending traffic crunch in and around the Dcarie Interchange.

The area is already difficult to navigate, and new projects including the controversial Royalmount shopping centre in Town of Mount Royal and residential developments are only going to make things harder in the coming years.

Already, an estimated 360,000 vehicles drive through the interchange every day. An estimated 70,000 cars will travel to and from the mall every day.

Led by Universit du Qubec Montral professor Florence Junca-Adenot, the committee will look into ways to keep people moving in the neighbourhood, from Namur to de la Savane streets along Dcarie Boulevard and the highway.

It will be made up of representatives from the:

• Transport Ministry.
• Municipal Affairs Ministry.
• City of Montreal.
• Town of Mount Royal.
• Association of Suburban Municipalities.
• Regional transit authority (ARTM).
• STM.

Montreal's economic, urban and housingdevelopment committee, which held public consultations on the Royalmount project, recommended the working group's creation earlier this year.

That committee also recommendedthe project be suspended, and Montreal MayorValriePlantehas said she wants the Town of Mount Royal and developerCarbonleoto review the project.

But if the province and city had any plans to forceCarbonleoto make changes, it appears they are backing down.

Work has already started on theRoyalmountmega-mall, at the intersection of Highways 15 and 40.

The complex, scheduled to open in 2022, will feature five hotels, several office towers, 100 restaurants, about 200 stores, a high-end wellness centre, an aquarium, a water park, a cinema, and 8,000 parking spots.

Eventually, the Royalmount site will also be home to thousands of residential units as well. Another planned development project, for the Blue Bonnets site, couldbring even more new residentsto the same area.