It’s not your imagination: traffic congestion is significantly higher this year for the start of the school year. In some areas, traffic on Greater Montreal’s roads even exceeds pre-pandemic levels, observers point out.
What you need to know
- The return to school is causing congestion similar to, or even greater than, pre-pandemic levels.
- On the ground, the increase in construction sites is adding to the discomfort of many motorists.
- Montreal is talking about difficult weeks ahead, but promises to adjust continuously.
“Everyone who is often on the road can see that we are definitely back to pre-pandemic times, especially in the Montreal region,” says Marc Cadieux, CEO of the Association du camionnage du Québec (ACQ).
At the start of the pandemic, Greater Montreal road traffic had dropped by a fifth. And its effect had lasted. As recently as last year, the level was hovering around 95% of the pre-pandemic threshold. But for the past few months, all the indicators have been pointing to a return to 2019 levels.
The most recent traffic data from the Department of Transportation is from April, so it is impossible to put an accurate figure on congestion.
However, we know that in May 2024, the average number of Canadians going to work on a regular basis was 16.5 million per day, a jump of 585,000 compared to May 2023.
According to Statistics Canada data, this is already a clear upward trend after the lows of 2020 and 2021. Of the 16.5 million people on the road, more than 80% use cars as their mode of transportation. And they are mostly alone in the car.
Again and again, the construction sites
On a daily basis, the proliferation of construction sites on key routes “complicates the situation,” notes Marc Cadieux. “There are works everywhere. And now, closures are everywhere, even in the evening and at night. All journeys therefore take longer, operating costs increase and service hours are increasingly restricted,” he maintains.
The City of Montreal recognizes that the problem is real: congestion levels are currently very high. “It will eventually stabilize like every year, but the next few weeks could be difficult,” says the administrative spokesperson for the metropolis, Philippe Sabourin.
Near the Jacques-Cartier Bridge, the construction site on De Maisonneuve Boulevard, between the Parthenais and De Lorimier axes, “is hurting us a lot right now,” acknowledges Mr. Sabourin. “This work is to double the volume of sewers under Maisonneuve, and there is an urgent need to act in this area because of the flooding. We would have liked to do it before to protect access to the bridge, but the pipe break and the giant geyser on René-Lévesque have disrupted our plans,” he explains.
The city assures that it is doing its utmost in the city centre; a recent surveillance blitz has enabled nine construction sites to be demobilised, out of a total of 108 visited, August 29. In total, more than 400 square metres of traffic lane were freed up..
“The balance between work and mobility is fragile, we know that, but everything is done to preserve it as much as possible,” assures the spokesperson. And the good news is that we have never had so many alternatives to the car.
Municipal interventions have their limits, however, says Philippe Sabourin. “We could increase the number of lanes on Papineau, but the reality is that we are on an island and Jacques-Cartier remains an urban bridge, not a highway. There will always be a bottleneck.”
Far from over
At the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility (MTMD), spokesperson Sarah Bensadoun also observes an overload. “We are no longer in the pandemic period. We are almost back to what we had before. But at the same time, it depends on the crossings. It is not the same everywhere,” she notes.
Pierre Barrieau, transportation planning expert at the University of Montreal, notes that “traffic is really higher than in 2019, especially at peak times, in certain areas.” For him, “the opening of the REM’s north and west branches would have helped a lot.”
“It’s a shame that it was postponed to 2025, because we would have unloaded a lot of cars, especially in the center.”
Pierre Barrieau’s prediction for the future? “Congestion will continue to get worse, and above all, it will grow first and foremost where there is zero investment in public transportation.”
At the ACQ, Marc Cadieux wonders if the Royalmount project – which opens with great fanfare this Thursday – “will further affect traffic.”
“For the moment, it remains speculative, but we have to be realistic: it is certain that the convergence of more motorists and deliveries towards this site will have an impact, despite the planned mitigation measures,” he says.
As for teleworking, data will soon confirm its impact on road traffic in figures, especially on Mondays and Fridays, which we know are the days when people often stay home. A first study will be conducted this fall on a national scale.