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The city of Montreal has asked the Canadian Transport Agency to order Canadian Pacific Railway to give it access to five of CP’s sites so it can complete the reports needed to move ahead with new track-level crossings.

After unsuccessful mediation between the city and CP, Montreal had asked the CTA to rule on its request for five new track-level crossings for pedestrians and cyclists. On July 11,the federal agency told the city its demand needed to be more precise and include more information.

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An evaluation of the sites in question is required to obtain that information, the city said in a statement sent out Friday.

In an open letter published in the Gazette and Le Devoir on Aug. 16, CP president and CEO Keith Creel said CP is committed to working with the city to install new grade-separated crossings, but insists that track-level passages would put pedestrian safety at risk.

Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre said on Friday he would have liked to have been able to solve the issue differently. Safety is important to the city, he said, and “now, you have areas where (people) are making holes in fences.

“That is more dangerous than to restructure (for) same-level crossings.”

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