A wise man once said: “If you’re planning a vacation in Quebec, leave your bicycle at home.”
The announcement by Serge Arsenault about the Pro Tour coming to Quebec got me thinking about the state of Montreal roads.
No longer can we refer to the giant gaping trenches lining Quebec roads as potholes. These nids-de-poule as locals refer to them, are larger than any Thanksgiving bird I’ve ever seen. The roads are patched, filled and re-patched and much like a pointillism painting, only create the illusion of a road. Freshly resurfaced roads develop cracks before the first frost, new concrete sidewalks are falling apart just months after being built.
Those that blame the harsh Quebec climate must not get out much. This may come as a news flash to some of you, but the snow and freezing temperatures don’t magically disappear when you cross into Ontario, Vermont or New York. And yet, roads on the other side of any Quebec border are infinately superior…
What does this say about the infrastructure of this province? Are skilled laborers simply un-skilled? Did someone lose the cement recipe? Who is responsible for managing government funds? Where does all of our money go? Are the Quebecois so complacent they just don’t care anymore?