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The city of Montreal is considering a plan to widen sidewalks on Ste-Catherine St. and reduce the space for vehicles to one lane, according to Radio-Canada.

The Plante administration is to release details in the coming weeks about how it plans to revamp Ste-Catherine between Atwater Ave. and Bleury St. Work to upgrade the infrastructure along Ste-Catherine began in January.

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Robert Beaudry, the city executive-committee member in charge of economic and commercial development, said this week that widening the sidewalks and reducing the width of the street is one of the scenarios the city is looking at.

That scenario would see the sidewalks extended from four metres to seven meters, leaving enough room for only one lane for cars and other vehicles. There would be no parking spots, according to Radio-Canada.

It is similar to what Projet Montreal suggested in 2015, when plans to refresh Ste-Catherine were announced by then-mayor Denis Coderre.

Merchants told the Montreal Gazette last month they had serious reservations about plans to reduce car traffic and parking along Ste-Catherine.

André Poulin, executive director of merchants association Destination Centre-Ville, said that many parking spaces and lots have been removed over the years and not replaced.

“We understand that Projet Montréal does not seem to like cars, but you have to recognize that citizens still use them, and if we don’t allow them to access downtown they will go elsewhere,” Poulin said. “It’s a very serious problem.”