Jean-Talon merchants say Metro extension hurting business, worried they won’t survive construction

Some business owners here on Jean Talon Street are asking the City of Montreal to help bring pedestrians back. The Metro's Blue Line extension is underway here and the bus that used to pass here has been rerouted. Now businesses say they're losing money and some are afraid they won't be able to make it through the next few months. Antonio Faustini founded this travel agency in 1965. In all this time, he says he's never dealt with a situation like this. We don't have money anymore, he says. Adding that it's directly linked to the nearby metro construction site. The two new metro stations on Jean-Talon Street should open in 2031, but Faustini says he might have to close his business by mid-January. Business owners came together to say they aren't against deconstruction. They just still want to be around when the stations are inaugurated. The local merchants association says foot traffic has decreased by 90%. They say the big reason is the loss of the 141 bus line which no longer comes here. They give us a navette which goes round in circle. But we've seen huge decreases in traffic and the merchants are suffering. Some businesses are already calling it quits. This restaurant location is up for sale. Since we put it on sale, no customer has come to buy it. Since putting it on the market, she says, no one has made an offer. The merchants have a list of demands for the city and the STM. Bring back the 141 bus on Jean-Talon and create a local roundtable that would include merchants, the STM and local officials. We want to know that this year we're meeting four times, just an example. And we can talk about things before they happen, instead of being reactive or proactive. You know, so it's a problem. They also want the street to be a bit more attractive during the work. They did an opening where they put actually plexiglass where pedestrians, passersby can actually look in. So why don't they do this right in front of our store? The borough of St. Leonard says the roundtable DSDC is asking for was created three years ago. DSTM adds that bringing back the bus line here isn't possible because of road closures. It also says it will continue to collaborate with merchants, but some of them say they may not be able to hold on that long.