Tour de l'île to roll through Montreal's east end this weekend
About 40,000 cyclists are expected to participate in the 40th Festival Go Vélo Montreal, split pretty evenly between the Tour la Nuit on Saturday night and Tour de l'île on Sunday.
This year's 1980s theme will pay homage to the festival's beginning in 1985, says Vélo Québec CEO Jean-François Rheault. The organization is encouraging participants to wear their most colourful clothes to travel the streets of the city.
Nearly 2,900 people took part in the Metropolitan Challenge last Sunday on the South Shore, the first stage of the cycling festival.
The Tour de l'île offers a choice of two routes: the 50 kilometre or the 70 to100 kilometre — both of which start in Maisonneuve Park this year and largely explore the east end.
The route is closed to car traffic throughout the event, following arterial roadways like Notre-Dame and Sherbrooke streets, as well as Gouin Boulevard.
Road closures will begin at roughly 8:30 a.m. and wrap up by 4 p.m., with openings and closings staggered throughout the event.
In addition, Vélo Québec is once again offering a 22-kilometre nighttime ride in the boroughs of Saint-Léonard, Montréal-Nord and Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie on Saturday. Road closures begin around 5:30 p.m. and end by 11:30 p.m.
"It's a good time to make sure you're seen," said Rheault. "Put lights on your bike and on yourself. It creates a magical movement in the city — a kind of illuminated trail."
While it is true that Quebec's cycling culture has evolved considerably over the past few decades, the event's mission is still so relevant, said Rheault.
The various circuits closed to car traffic allow cyclists to ride with more peace of mind, but also to "reclaim the city," he added.
Several volunteers and police officers will ensure the event is held away from motorists.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
27 minutes ago
- CTV News
Construction on Regina's new indoor aquatics facility to start next month
City of Regina officials, along with some project partners, broke ground for the new indoor aquatics facility on Tuesday. (Mick Favel / CTV News) Construction on Regina's new indoor aquatics facility will officially begin next month. A sod turning ceremony was held by the City of Regina on Tuesday with officials highlighting the amenities the facility will provide. 'The new aquatic centre will provide room for health and wellness, gathering and socializing, and playing and competing,' Minister of Government Relations Eric Schmalz said. Specifically, the facility will feature two 50 metres pools designed to host national amenities, a wave pool, waterslides, dryland training spaces, community spaces, an outdoor play structure and spray pad, according to the City of Regina. The facility, which will be located at the Sportplex at 1717 Elphinstone Street, was approved as a project to replace the aging Lawson Aquatic Centre. Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski shared his sentiments about the project, emphasizing that it's about more than just recreation. 'We're thrilled for this groundbreaking moment,' he said in the announcement. 'It's about accessibility, equity and creating a space where everyone feels welcome. It's a project years in the making that will benefit Regina for generations to come.' In addition, a geothermal heating facility will be constructed to heat the new aquatics centre. The facility is set to be open in 2029, with the City of Regina to provide updates on the project on its website. - More details to come…
CBC
28 minutes ago
- CBC
Ambulance shortage in Winnipeg creates dangerous strain on firefighters, public: UFFW
The union representing firefighters says the City of Winnipeg is putting the public at risk through understaffing of emergency responders — with only nine of 19 ambulances operating on Saturday. On top of that, only six of the 11 communications operator shifts — 911 call takers and dispatchers — were filled, said Nick Kasper, president of United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg. "We're talking about only having nine ambulances for a city with over 800,000 people, on a Saturday night. You can do the math — the ambulance response times are significantly delayed," he said. In an emailed statement to CBC News, Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service Chief Christian Schmidt acknowledged the "significant number of unplanned absences" and said every effort was made to fill the shifts, but those were unsuccessful. "At any given time, some members will be on vacation, in accordance with WFPS policies and collective agreements. In addition to staff being away on their allotted vacation time, WFPS also receives sick time calls each shift and has members away on long-term leaves," he wrote. The domino effect means the extra weight is carried by fire crews. As part of Winnipeg's integrated model, each fire vehicle has a firefighter-paramedic on board. Backstopping the ambulance shortfall means fire crews attend more medical calls and wait until an ambulance arrives to transport a patient. "And while we're doing so, we're not available for 911 calls in our community, whether those are life-threatening medical emergencies or structure fires," Kasper said. In an industry that measures success or failure in seconds — a fire can double in size every 30-60 seconds — that wait can be tragic, he said, giving the example of a response time of nine minutes and 40 seconds to a house fire in St. Vital on Aug. 10. "The structure was a total loss and both neighbouring homes were damaged," Kasper said. "These are the devastating consequences." The closest fire station was on Dakota Street, about a kilometre away, but there were no trucks available there, so crews had to be called in from stations farther away. The target response time for WFPS is four minutes, but it's been closer to double that since 2021, Kasper said. This summer, there was a 10-minute response time to a house fire in Transcona, while it took nearly 14 minutes to get crews to a house fire in The Maples, he said. "I've never seen anything like that in my 18 years in the service," Kasper said. In the latter incident, the closest available fire truck for a call in the city's northwest corner was downtown. Within the past two months, there have been 15-minute responses to serious medical calls, Kasper said. "That's contributing or resulting in loss of lives." The issue is compounded by insufficient staffing, he said. Firefighters already work overtime to fill those vacancies and are now trying to carry the shortfall for the ambulances. Council has known since a 2009 audit that WFPS staffing is insufficient, Kasper said. There are fewer staff and fire trucks now than in 1975, when the city's population was 570,000, he said. Consequently, UFFW members are experiencing severe burnout, Kasper said. That leads to more staff shortages as members go on leave, exacerbating the vicious cycle that causes physical and psychological injuries. "Starting our shifts 10, 20, 30 and even 40 firefighters short is not unusual," he said. "Time lost due to psychological injury is our fastest-climbing statistic." In 2024, the WFPS lost 17,600 hours to Workers Compensation Board claims for psychological ailments. "I've never, in my 18 years, seen morale this bad," Kasper said. Last year, the city spent more than $10 million on firefighter overtime, which is enough to hire 70 full-time staff, Kasper said. For the first fiscal quarter of 2025, $6.5 million was spent on overtime. "This is not an efficient way to staff a public safety service. Winnipeggers are paying more and they're receiving less," he said. "But [council] seems happy to defend the status quo." In his email, Schmidt said steps are being taken to address the issues. "By the end of 2025, we will have hired more than 50 new firefighters and 25 new paramedics. These new hires replace those lost through attrition, including retirements," he said. In 2024, the province funded 40 new firefighters to coincide with the new WFPS station in Waverley West, he said. But recruitment is an ongoing challenge, as is the increasing volume of calls and risks of burnout, Schmidt said. "This is not an easy career. I want to thank all our members for their continued service to residents." switch to a new priority dispatch system earlier this year, Schmidt said. "This new system aims to ensure those with the most time-dependent emergencies receive care first. Other less time-dependent calls may wait," he said.
CBC
28 minutes ago
- CBC
CBC's Aarti Pole speaks to former jobs minister Lisa Raitt about the Air Canada strike ending
Get the latest on the CBC News App, and CBC News Network for breaking news and analysis.
