Don’t drive downtown, arrive early and leave your cooler at home. Following just these three guidelines should help make celebrating Canada Day in the capital hassle free — but there’s a lot more revellers will want to keep in mind.
With officials estimating crowds surpassing 400,000 – and a host of VIPs on hand to help celebrate the 150th anniversary of Confederation, it’s no surprise security will be even tighter than usual and the City of Ottawa will be restricting motor traffic.
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Parliament Hill security is planning to screen visitors and search bags from June 30 until July 2, confiscating anything on their list of restricted items.
Included in that list is aerosol, hard-sided coolers, any kind of fireworks, anything with a blade (scissors, knives included), any sporting equipment (bats, sticks, helmets, etc.) items considered too large such as parasols or tables, and all forms of alcohol.
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Any illegal items, like drugs and weapons, will also be confiscated (and there’s a possibility of facing charges).
For anyone who, either intentionally or not, brings in a restricted or illegal item, it doesn’t look like trying to talk your way out of it is worth it.
“If the visitor is refusing to relinquish the item(s), the visitor will be escorted off site,” the Parliamentary Protective Service warns on its website.
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Every single person on the Hill will have to pass through one of the two screening tents set up nearby (those with special needs or reduced mobility can find details about screening and accommodation on this Canadian Heritage page).
Because of this, the city is recommending anyone wanting to see or hear something in particular arrive early — really early.
“Due to large crowds, anyone attending an event on Parliament Hill is advised to arrive two to three hours before show time,” the city wrote on its Canada Day site.
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And that suggestion extends all the way into the night for the fireworks show scheduled to begin at 11 pm, which means “leaving home” by 8 pm, according to the site.
And, of course, given the fact the city is restricting motor traffic to a lot of the downtown core, visitors will probably be best leaving their cars behind and checking where buses are re-routed and detoured as a consequence.
Bearing all of this in mind, Canada Day revellers will also probably benefit from some flexibility and a healthy dose of patience, since police have said they’re ready to turn people away from areas with too many visitors, according to reports.
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The public isn’t privy to many details about specific security measures in place over the Canada Day weekend, but visitors and residents can likely expect a significant police presence throughout downtown and the Hill.
There’s also the possibility of using dump trucks filled with sand to block key intersections, in an attempt to prevent a vehicle from ramming into the crowd. Such attacks occurred during holiday celebrations in Nice, France last year.
Ottawa previously used trucks to block intersections last New Year’s Eve to protect a children’s march from City Hall to Parliament Hill.
The Parliamentary Protective Service, formed in the wake of a terror attack on the Hill in 2014, requested an additional $6 million in March to pad out its annual budget for this year.
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