A Winter Storm & Road Closures Could Be Bad News For Traffic In Montreal This Weekend

Between an upcoming winter storm and a bunch of road closures, traffic could be tricky for drivers in Greater Montreal this weekend.

To avoid getting stuck in dreaded Montreal traffic or — worse yet — in an accident, here's what you need to know.

How will the weather affect traffic?

A nasty winter storm is expected to make its way to the Montreal area this weekend and, according to Environment Canada, "travel could be significantly impacted."

In fact, Environment Canada put out a special weather alert for the following areas:

• Châteauguay - La Prairie
• Laval
• Longueuil - Varennes
• Montreal Island

"A system from Colorado will move into Western Quebec late in the day on Sunday and reach eastern parts of the province on Monday morning," the alert says.

It says the storm could start with snow and then turn into freezing rain overnight on Sunday.

"Forecast precipitation types and amounts will become more certain as the event draws nearer and warnings will be issued as needed," Environment Canada says.

Meanwhile, MétéoMédia is predicting up to 25 centimetres of snow in parts of Quebec. It also predicts strong winds gusting up to 80 km/hour in the Greater Montreal area. This could even lead to power outages.

What road closures can drivers expect this weekend?

Quebec's transportation ministry issued a press release outlining several obstacles on Greater Montreal roads throughout the December 3 weekend.

Between Longueuil and Montreal, Highway 25 northbound will be closed from exit 90 (R-132, A-30, La Prairie, Varennes) on Highway 20 west and the entrance to rue Notre-Dame Est / Curatteau — a stretch that includes the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel. The closure is set to start Saturday at 12:30 a.m. and last until Monday at 5 a.m.

On the South Shore, expect the following closures starting at 11:30 p.m. on Friday:

• Ramps leading from R-132 east and west (Exits 89-N) to Highway 25 north
• East and west entrances to boulevard Marie-Victorin
• Entrance to rue de l'Île-Charron

In Boucherville, at the Highway 20 / Highway 30 Interchange, the ramp leading from Highway 20 to Highway 30 west / Vaudreuil-Dorion will be closed between Friday at 10:30 p.m. and Monday at 5 a.m.

Between Montreal and Brossard, at the end of the Samuel-De Champlain Bridge towards the South Shore (Highway 10 east, Highway 15 south), there's a partial closure of two out of three lanes, Saturday and Sunday from 5 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In Montreal, two traffic lanes on Avenue Papineau southbound between rue Sherbrooke and rue Ontario will be closed for maintenance from Friday at 9:30 a.m. to Monday at 6 a.m.

Note that some or all construction work may be postponed due to the weather.

Brave drivers will find a full list of detours on the Mobility Montreal website.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.