With Tour de l'Île weekend pedalling into Montreal, drivers should plan their trips
This weekend, Tour de l'Île will be pedalling through parts of Montreal, leading to fun for cyclists but headaches for some drivers trying to navigate certain areas of the city.
Things will kick off Friday night with the Tour la Nuit, starting at Maisonneuve park.
While the biking starts at 8 p.m., street closures will begin at 5 p.m. when Rosemont Boulevard closes between Viau Street and Pix-IX Boulevard in the city's east end.
From there, a long list of streets will close for blocks of time, some for several hours. For example, that first section will be closed until midnight. The night course covers 24 car-free kilometres through six boroughs.
A complete list of street closures and times can be found here.
The night tour will travel through boroughs such as Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, Saint-Léonard, Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie, Anjou and Montréal-Nord.
A map of the route can be found here.
Then on Sunday, a different route is on offer for the daytime riders, giving them exclusive use of 47 kilometres of streets through seven boroughs.
The loop will go through areas such as Rivière-des-Prairies, Anjou, Montréal-Nord, Ahuntsic-Cartierville, Parc-Extension, Outremont, Plateau-Mont-Royal and Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie.
A complete list of street closures can be found here, with closures starting at 6 a.m. and running into the afternoon. The map can be found here. Cyclists start pedalling at 9:15 a.m., with activities throughout the route.
"As these events will change the usual traffic conditions, we invite you to plan your trips," organizer Vélo Québec says on its website.
Alternative measures have been put in place to ensure access to health-care facilities located near the Tour la Nuit and Tour de l'Île routes, Vélo Québec says.
The organization recommends getting information from the health facility, or by calling 811.
The organization also has a support service to help people navigate traffic. They can email or call for more information. The contact information is available on Vélo Québec's website.
