Chris Lowrey
SHAWVILLE Oct. 11, 2017
On a typical school day, students find themselves trapped in a real life version of the classic video game “Frogger” as they dodge cars and trucks to cross Centre Street to get home from school.
Quebec’s Ministry of Transport (MTQ) has approved for a new crossing area at the corner of Centre Street and Maple Street.
Although it’s not necessarily a crosswalk, there will now be a clearly delineated spot where students can cross the street safely. The sidewalk currently ends abruptly on the west side of Centre Street.

“Right now the sidewalk stops at Maple Street so the kids have to cross Centre and Marion sort of at the same time,” said Shawville Councillor Bill McCleary. “What we’ve been trying to do for about nine months is to get it extended down the west side of Centre Street to approximately where the Ski-Doo trail is, and let them cross there.”
The crosswalk in front of the post office is a pedestrian crosswalk, meaning vehicles have to slow down and grant the pedestrian the right-of-way. Another crosswalk in front of Dr. S.E. McDowell Elementary does not force vehicles to grant right-of-way to pedestrians.
The new crossing on Centre Street gives pedestrians maximum visibility in both directions.
McCleary said that Pontiac MNA André Fortin was at the site a few months ago and McCleary said Fortin was shocked at the chaos.
“We invited them up specifically at bus time and they couldn’t believe the traffic,” he said. “You’ve got kids coming up from McDowell at the same time, going home and you have kids from the high school coming down to walk home.”
McCleary said he’s hopeful that the new arrangement will make it safer for the students to get to and from school.
“Instead of crossing at fifteen different places between Maple and the railroad, they’re going to cross in one, hopefully,” McCleary said.