The Social Network, the Individual and the Highway
In 2001 and 2002, a critical review of the Montreal region highway system was undertaken during the course of the creation of a public consultation commission on the improvement of transport mobility between Montreal and the South Shore suburbs and during the public hearings held by the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement (BAPE) on the modernization of Notre Dame Street. These events prompted an extensive public debate, provided the backdrop for debates addressing problems on a metropolitan scale and received wide coverage in the media. They also provided an opportunity to reshape transportation planning issues by focusing on forgotten elements such as quality of life, life surroundings and the environment. Local actors taking part in this debate, who had defined themselves as partners and who had supported the Ministry of Transport’s proposal, did not have much success. Their position was not considered, and the selected solution was put forward by associations and individuals who, for the most part, have little or nothing to do with the local neighborhood. In this paper, we explore the development of planning practices during this period of intense debate and present an analysis, based on the issues raised, of the outcomes of the negotiations that took place among the various stakeholders.