OTTAWA -- Police checkpoints are coming down in parts of the Outaouais Monday, but the random stops on the bridges between Ottawa and Gatineau are set to remain.
The province of Quebec set up the checkpoints at border crossings April 1 to limit non-essential travel in a bid to curb the spread of COVID-19. The checkpoints caused long lines on some of the bridges between Ottawa and Gatineau at times, as police stopped each driver to ask if they had a good reason to enter the province. While the majority of drivers were cleared, some were told to turn around and stay in Ontario.
In late April, the Quebec government said checkpoints would come down in the Outaouais on May 11, but the random stops would continue at the Ottawa-Gatineau crossings indefinitely.
Despite some restrictions being eased, Deputy Premier Genevieve Guilbault said the government is still advising people to avoid non-essential travel in the province and added there won’t be hesitation to implement the travel restrictions again if there’s a spike in COVID-19 infections.
Both Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson and Ontario Premier Doug Ford have said they have no plans to install similar checkpoints on the Ontario side of the Ottawa River.
This comes as Quebec eases other restrictions, most notably on schools. Elementary school students outside Montreal are able to return to classes starting Monday, but attendance is not mandatory. In the English-language Western Quebec School Board, classes aren't set to resume until Tuesday, to give teachers the chance to get training on the use of personal protective equipment.
Only 14 per cent of students in the Western Quebec School Board are expected to return to their classrooms.
According to Quebec's ministry of health, there have been 337 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the Outaouais region. Eight people have died.
