Sunday, the annual construction leave will officially start. It is a 50-year-old tradition, unique in the province, which has a major effect on the tourism industry in Bas-Saint-Laurent … and on its roads.
It is a Quebec feature: 80 % of workers in construction and a good part of the rest of Quebec fall on vacation for two weeks.
A few days before construction leave, here are four things to know.
$ 26 million for workers from here
This year, the 7,000 construction workers in Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie have already received a vacation check in April, for a total of more than $ 26 million, according to the Quebec Construction Commission.
The amount distributed is increasing, but the number of workers in the region has dropped slightly compared to last year.
At the provincial scale, more than $ 645 million was redistributed to the 192,603 industry workers.
Sunday, the annual construction leave will officially start. It is a 50-year-old tradition, unique in the province, which has a major effect on the tourism industry in Bas-Saint-Laurent … and on its roads.
Photo: Radio-channel / Pierre-Loivier Search
2. Many tourists will be in the region
While many vacationers intend to visit Quebec rather than going to the United States, Tourisme Bas-Saint-Laurent announced at the start of the summer to expect a busy season.
In addition, it is one of the best starts of season in recent years for the Bas-Saint-Laurent campsites. For many of them, the season started earlier than usual, and the booking books are already well garnished for the construction vacation period.
With workers who have taken their vacation at the same time, the region could expect to receive many visitors.
3. Watch out on the road!
With many visitors comes an increased risk of road accident in the region.
Notice to road users: The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) will have your eye for the next two weeks. The police force will intensify its interventions during the construction holidays.
They will be more present on the road network, but also on water bodies and trails.
Police authorities call for caution and compliance with the rules in force.
In 2024, 14 people lost their lives on the roads of the territory served by the SQ During the construction holidays. In total, 13 fatal collisions were deplored for the same period.
4. Other services close at the same time
Certain municipalities, such as Saint-Modest, close for a few days, during the construction holidays. It will then be necessary to check the schedule of each of the municipalities before going to the municipal office.
In addition, a new strike will paralyze the Matane-Baie-Comeau-Godbout crossing on Friday, until August 3.
This interruption of service could give many headaches to passing visitors in the East.
The strike that begins occurs a few days after another week of strike which interrupted it crossed between July 4 and 13.
