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Quebec has Canada’s worst roads, according to CAA report

Click to play video: 'It’s official: Quebec has the worst roads in Canada'
It’s official: Quebec has the worst roads in Canada
WATCH: It is perhaps the worst kept secret in Canada, but now, it is official. According to the Canadian Automobile Association, Quebec boasts the worst roads in the country and it hits drivers in this province right in the wallet. As Global's Tim Sargeant explains, crumbling infrastructure and lack of investment are just some of the reasons why Quebec roads are so bad. – Mar 30, 2021

It’s a damning report for Quebec lawmakers, who in recent years have spent billions of dollars trying to improve the ailing road infrastructure: the road network in Quebec is among the worst in Canada, according to CAA.

The agency published its report after doing a lengthy inventory of all local and highway road conditions across the country.

Its findings conclude that 51 per cent of Quebec roads received a failing grade, according to CAA’s press release.

“It’s a myth being confirmed by fact right now,” CAA-Quebec spokesperson Nicolas Ryan told Global News.

The report also indicates that Quebecers spend on average $258 a year on car repairs and maintenance caused by poor road conditions.

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That’s double the amount compared to the national average of $126 a year.

“That to me is a damning number, saying that yes, our roads are worse than others,” Ryan said.

Parts of the famed Sainte-Catherine Street have crumbled so much that the decades old street car rail tracks are exposed.

City officials say billions of dollars have been spent in recent years on repairs and maintenance on Montreal roads and billions more is planned in the years ahead.

But it’s a catch-up job.

“We know we have roads in bad shape. We’re concerned. It’s a question of security for everyone,” Philippe Sabourin, a Montreal cty spokesperson, told Global News.

Ten-year-old skateboarding enthusiast Audrey Ranger just hopes local roads will be repaired quickly. The resident of a Montreal suburb says the current conditions are dangerous.

“I’ve fallen quite a few times because of the holes in the road,” Ranger told Global News.

CAA says the most cost-effective way to improve roads is to invest in regular maintenance and upkeep instead of waiting until a road falls apart.

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Click to play video: 'Quebec sees more deaths on the roads in 2020: SQ annual report'
Quebec sees more deaths on the roads in 2020: SQ annual report

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