Parent protesters hit the streets to call for school zone safety in Quebec

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Parents and concerned citizens are expected to take the the streets around schools across Quebec Tuesday morning to call for improved safety measures in school zones.

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Organizers of the event, which is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m., are demanding the province produce a road-safety policy that will also improve security on one-way streets and bicycle paths, the installation of protective bollards, increased police surveillance and tougher penalties for drivers who violate the rules of the road.

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The protests come six weeks after 7-year-old Mariia Legenkovska, a Ukrainian refugee, died after being struck by a car while walking to school in her Montreal neighbourhood. The driver of the vehicle left the scene but was arrested a few hours afterward. He has been freed pending his next court appearance.

Protest organizers say that in 2023 such incidents can and must be prevented.

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Two weeks ago, the organizations Piétons Québec, CAA-Québec and Vivre en ville denounced the inaction of the Legault government on the issue, calling to for measures to improve the safety of pedestrians and cyclists on Quebec roadways.

A preliminary report by the Société de l’assurance-automobile du Québec for 2022 indicates that as of September, 39 pedestrians had been killed in traffic accidents, 14.7 more than for all of 2021.