There are 44 major construction projects coming to Montreal

Montrealears are no strangers to orange cones. They even feel a sense of nostalgia when they travel outside the province and spot their symbolic cousins.

In fact, the pedestrian object synonymous with road closures is so common in our lingo that the French dictionary Petit Robert will be adding the phrase “cône orange” to its 2026 edition. 

The cones will not be relegated to printed books and be forgotten, though. 

Montreal motorists will have to be patient once again this summer – navigating the festival of orange cones – as a number of major roadworks are planned in and around the city that will lead to closures and possible headaches for drivers.  

On Wednesday, Mobilité Montréal, overseen by Quebec’s Transport Ministry to mitigate the impacts of road projects on traffic, revealed 44 major construction projects affecting roads, highways and public transit networks. Nineteen of these projects are new. 

“There’s going to be construction, work sites. You will have to plan your move. You better check that out if you want to save time and have a better quality of life,” said Philippe Sabourin, spokesperson for the City of Montreal. 

Montrealer Alex Sam said the roadwork will make it harder for commuters. “It’s very inconvenient. It already makes it a hassle to drive home. I can’t imagine how much worse it’ll be,” Sam said. 

One of the most significant closures is on Highway 40 eastbound, between the Côte-de-Liesse interchange and Highway 15 – the start of the closure is scheduled for this Friday from 11:30 p.m. to Tuesday at 5 a.m. This is the first of at least two closures for this stretch of Highway 40 for paving work. 

Sarah Bensadoun, spokesperson for the Quebec’s ministry of transport, said that the work on Highway 40 was originally done in 2020-2021 but it has to be redone since it wasn’t up to the ministry’s standards. 

Bensadoun added that major roadwork projects were also expected in downtown Montreal and in other central parts of the island. 

“There’s also downtown Montreal that includes the city’s network, but also the ministry’s network and the Société les Ponts Jacques Cartier et Champlain for Highway 10 Bonaventure,” she said. 

Jérémie Dubois-Lavoie, who works downtown said that he is concerned about the impact of such major projects on businesses and individuals. 

“It’s definitely impacting the downtown spirit and the downtown area itself. I mean, it’s impacting businesses. I’m one person who’s working downtown and the construction is definitely impacting my income,” he said. 

With work planned to happen all over the city, others like Ghasem Sarkani say that it is difficult to navigate. “Oh, it’s very painful. It’s very hard for people who don’t know which roads are closed.” 

Sabourin said the Montreal city website has a “construction and obstruction” map that shows every construction site – including private construction – on a real-time basis. 

Mobilité Montréal says motorists can also consult the Quebec 5-1-1 website to get up to date information on road conditions and closures.