Grand-Prix weekend road closures trap motorists, cyclists in urban maze

Driving in Montreal will be extra slow and painful this weekend, thanks to the Grand Prix and Mural Festival adding to the city's persistent onslaught of construction-related detours.

Here's where to avoid if you don't want to sit in traffic or get lost in the maze that is Montreal's road network.

Downtown

For the Grand Prix's downtown party site, de Maisonneuve Blvd. is closed between Bishop and de la Montagne streets until Sunday morning.

Cyclists have been detoured to Ste-Catherine or Sherbrooke streets, as security would not allow bikes to be walked through the site.

Crescent Street is, of course, closed between Ste-Catherine and Sherbrooke until Sunday.

Peel Street between Sherbrooke and Rene-Levesque Boulevard is closed until Monday.

And just east, Metcalfe Street is closed between Ste-Catherine and René-Lévesque​.

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Plateau-Mont-Royal

This weekend is the fifth edition of Mural Fest, the street art festival in the Plateau-Mont-Royal borough.

Along with artists setting up on side streets to paint large-scale artworks, St-Laurent Boulevard will be completely closed to serve as the main artery for pedestrian attendees.

The Main is closed between Sherbrooke and Mont-Royal Avenue until Sunday, June 18.

Old Montreal

The area around St-Paul Street should also be avoided — it's closed between du Marché-Bonsecours Street and St-Laurent.

It's also closed between McGill and Saint-Sulpice streets. The street should reopen early Monday morning.

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STM

To ease some of the stress of getting around, the STM is offering a special $18 three-day pass for Grand Prix-goers. A two-day pass is $13.75.

The special Grand Prix du Canada transit passes are on sale at select stations, which are listed here.