Construction

I stayed in Old Montreal this weekend and just wanted you guys to know there is some massive construction going on. They are digging up St. Paul East and West and if you think you will drive down St. Paul all the way, forget about it. The area east of Place Jacques Cartier is being heavily dug up including side roads shooting off St. Paul. I was up early Monday and lots of construction workers were already out working at 6:00-6:30 am.

I was walking down one of the side roads running from Notre Dame to St. Paul West and there was a big dig and some guy was asking me how to access a restaurant on the corner. I had no idea at first but then I saw a ramp of wood leading from the closed, dug up part of the road to a side door. At that point the guy disappeared and I wondering whether he gave up trying to get into the place.

There are detours all over the place, in fact, I missed my exit off the Pont Champlain and ended up driving through a massive detour to get to rue Wellington and back to Old Montreal. Just a nightmare and did not drive again until I left the City. Just isn't worth it. I walked or took the Metro.

EagerBeaver said:

I was walking down one of the side roads running from Notre Dame to St. Paul West and there was a big dig and some guy was asking me how to access a restaurant on the corner. I had no idea at first but then I saw a ramp of wood leading from the closed, dug up part of the road to a side door. At that point the guy disappeared and I wondering whether he gave up trying to get into the place.

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Maybe he fell into the hole.

That's nothing. Wait for the first real snow storm!!

Doc Holliday said:

Maybe he fell into the hole.

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Actually there is so much digging going on in and around St. Paul in Old Montreal that I fell and tripped into holes and/or uneven pavement several times. The signage is not all that great in some of these areas warning you about holes, uneven pavement, loose gravel etc. and one can easily twist, sprain and break ankles walking through this minefield of construction. Some areas are wired off where they are digging, but not perfectly.

EagerBeaver said:

Actually there is so much digging going on in and around St. Paul in Old Montreal that I fell and tripped into holes and/or uneven pavement several times. The signage is not all that great in some of these areas warning you about holes, uneven pavement, loose gravel etc. and one can easily twist, sprain and break ankles walking through this minefield of construction. Some areas are wired off where they are digging, but not perfectly.

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This past summer i drove to Mtl a couple of times and i took the wrong route coming out of Montreal one day and i swear all the construction around me made Montreal look like a war zone. I swore on that day never to drive to Montreal again for another year or so and i'd wait for most of the road construction to be over the next time i chose to drive there. Good thing i had decided to leave at 7 am instead waiting a few hours or else i would have likely wound up waiting in traffic for several hours. Terrible!

On my last trip (and on most prior trips), I took the 747 bus line from and to the airport; the bus was very quick and passed by lots of passenger cars on the way to the airport. I wonder if there is a special dedicated lane for buses only, at least around the airport (YUL Montreal airport). Maybe you can park along the 747 bus route and take the bus (C$10). I love taking the 747 bus because I get to see different travelers and don't have to chat with the driver if I'm not in the mood to talk; some of the 747 drivers are pretty funny. I took Uber a couple of times (the drivers had to keep taking detours because of construction related massive traffic) but I found walking around downtown to be quicker and a more pleasant experience. Buses and the Metro lines are the best ways to get around Montreal, if I'm too tired to walk or if I'm carrying lots of groceries.

ShyMan said:

On my last trip (and on most prior trips), I took the 747 bus line from and to the airport; the bus was very quick and passed by lots of passenger cars on the way to the airport. I wonder if there is a special dedicated lane for buses only, at least around the airport (YUL Montreal airport). Maybe you can park along the 747 bus route and take the bus (C$10). I love taking the 747 bus because I get to see different travelers and don't have to chat with the driver if I'm not in the mood to talk; some of the 747 drivers are pretty funny. I took Uber a couple of times (the drivers had to keep taking detours because of construction related massive traffic) but I found walking around downtown to be quicker and a more pleasant experience. Buses and the Metro lines are the best ways to get around Montreal, if I'm too tired to walk or if I'm carrying lots of groceries.

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I agree with you. I also took the 747 bus several times since and there were barely any delays. They now make a detour and pass by the Lachine canal. I actually stayed at the airport (Marriott) several times and would take the bus back and forth when i'd want to go downtown. It was strange waking up and then just going down the escalator to go and catch my flight. I'd do it again anytime and this is likely what i'll do next June or so if i decide to attend the GP.

Hold on girls! By 2022 or maybe before there will be a new electric train that will let you relay airport and downtown in 7 minutes! Wouhou!

Cheers

jalimon said:

Hold on girls! By 2022 or maybe before there will be a new electric train that will let you relay airport and downtown in 7 minutes! Wouhou!

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I nearly took the train from downtown Mtl to Dorval this past summer. But i wasn't sure if there'd be a shuttle at the Dorval station which would take me to the airport.

Fucking construction!! When will it ever end?