Yesterday, a woman died in a restaurant, squashed by a block of concrete that fell from the 18th floor of the building where the restaurant was located. This happened precisely 200 meters from where our office is located. Thousands of people walk these streets every day.
Accident ?
Sure but not only. This accident is one more reminder of one of the most critical issue with Quebec today: its fundamental lack of investment in its structures.
During the winter, there is not one week without a water pipe breaking causing havoc for the morning traffic. More than one third of the pipe network is more than 50 years old. You bet it's going to break with the -30 in the winter and +30 in the summer!
Our biggest highway interchange, echangeur Turcot in Montreal, has already lost many of its pieces. Last summer, almost day for day, the transport ministry closed several lanes under the pressure of engineers who raised a red flag after auditing the structure.
On September 30th 2006, Viaduc de la Concorde, an overpass of the city of Laval, suburb of Montreal, collapsed causing the death of 5 person after blocks of concrete were spotted falling on the highway. In 2000, several beams from Viaduc du Souvenir, another overpass, had fallen on the highway causing the death of 1 person.
This is Viaduc Rockland, an overpass that goes over the railway, which I drive on almost every single day. Last year lanes were closed in order to lighten the load of the structure. The apron has supposedly been reinforced to handle the traffic. Wait and see.
Quebec is crumbling in pieces. Most investments date back from the 70s or before. And you know the saying here: "faut en avoir pour son argent" (you have to get your money's worth). The sad reality is that this attitude has been governing most of the decisions made by the Province or the municipalities.
And now it's costing people's life.
Shameful.
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