Expected to be up and running this winter, city continues with old ‘No-Parking’ signs
It’s been around a year since the City of Laval announced, with a degree of fanfare, that it would be expanding its use of illuminated electronic signage along residential streets, to better keep motorists and residents informed of parking restrictions whenever snow removal ops are about to begin following snowfalls.
During the January city council meeting in 2024, the council members awarded a contract to Pierre Brossard (1981) ltée to install electronic parking regulation signage on a range of streets in districts such as Chomedey in west end Laval.
New system not started yet
The signs, which are programmable remotely, allow municipal employees to inform motorists and residents in “real time,” rather than with the age-old, manually-set up cardboard signs, which have been in usage for decades and must be placed by hand one-at-a-time in snow banks on street curbs.
When functioning, the new illuminated panels light up when needed to display specific times when snow removal (or street cleaning operations during the summer) are taking place. The city decided to opt for the system following tests with several pilot projects over the past few years on its territory.
Cardboard signs for now
That said, however, now comes word from a homeowner on Chenard St. in Chomedey that the city is continuing to use cardboard signs on his street. This is in spite of the fact that some of the new electronic signs have been installed on Chenard, but appear to have been serving no useful purpose up to now.
Widespread implementation of the system began during the summer of 2024, and it was expected to become functional in Chomedey over the current winter period. This was to be followed by the installation and activation of a similar electronic signage system in Pont-Viau and Laval-des-Rapides over the coming summer months.
In an interview with The Laval News, Jason Hope of Chenard St. said he wasn’t particularly put off that the city was still be using the old cardboard sign system, even though the new electronic signage has been in place (although inactive) for some time.
Residents want to know
He said he and a few of his neighbours were “just curious” about the city’s intentions. It’s worth noting that the City of Laval decided to adopt the new automated sign system as part of a package of amendments to its wintertime snow-removal strategy, which previously included a narrow and unpopular no parking policy following snowfalls.
“I had some discussion with my neighbours who were wondering, you know, why they [the city] are still putting out those signboards,” he said, adding that they’d gone online to the City of Laval’s website to see if there was any information, only to see there was none.
“Nothing came up with regard to when they [the new signs] are actually going to be getting used,” he continued. “It would be nice just to get a little guidance from the city – maybe just a little bit of communication as to when. Even though we didn’t get much snow this year, it would just be nice to know when the city will be putting this into use.”
Not yet up and running
The Laval News reached out to the City of Laval for some clarification as to when the new system will be functional.
Carolanne L. Gagnon, a spokesperson for the city’s public affairs and marketing division, said the system is still being installed within an area of Laval’s west end bounded by autoroutes 13, 15, 440 and the Rivière des Prairies.
However, there was no word from her on a precise or even approximate date when the system might be functional. “Before it becomes operational, an official notice will be sent to residents in the sectors which are affected to let them know the official date,” she said.
Until then, she added, the city’s existing methods of informing residents, as well as the portable cardboard no parking signs, will remain in use.
