Mélissa Gélinas LJI Reporter

The Guy-Lafleur Highway claimed another life on the night of August 26 in Lochaber. This time, a 46-year-old Gatineau man died when his sports utility vehicle (SUV) collided with a heavy goods vehicle in a section of the road where the lanes meet in the wrong direction. Details regarding the cause of the accident have not yet been released.

According to Thurso Mayor Mélanie Boyer, while the highway expansion is necessary, more temporary safety measures such as guardrails or cement blocks are needed to reduce the accident rate. “We need to find a way to prevent motorists from crossing the highway in the wrong direction,” she commented. “It’s starting to become an urgent situation,” she continued. “One death is one too many on our roads.”

According to Mayor Boyer, more pressure must be put on government authorities to improve the situation. “Things have to change!” she said. She believes it’s important for the government to consider this highway a major issue and act quickly. “I can’t wait for the Guy-Lafleur Highway to take its proper name and stop being called the Highway of Death.”