Nez Rouge returns for the holidays, but not in full force

After getting shelved by the pandemic last year, Nez Rouge is back — but not everywhere and not every night.

The safe ride service started back up Friday, but this year, it's been forced to cut back. Nez Rouge will only be operating in 24 areas of the province this year, instead of the 60 or so regions it normally serves.

"Our organizations [in those areas] simply could not put up the resources to hold a campaign this year," said Julie Martineau, the awareness program co-ordinator for the non-profit.

"They will be obviously cheering on from the sidelines, but they will be offering more awareness activities than an actual campaign."

Even in the regions where Nez Rouge is still operating, most areas will have a reduced schedule, as opposed to the usual seven-day service. 

In Montreal, volunteers will only be offering rides from Wednesday to Sunday. Longueuil and the South Shore will only have volunteers ready on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.

Communities west of Montreal, such as Vaudreuil-Dorion and Hudson, will also have only three nights a week — but only until Christmas. There won't be any service in the area approaching or on New Year's Eve.

In Quebec City, it will be only Thursday through Saturday, totalling only 16 nights in all of December.

Martineau said that volunteers will need to provide proof of vaccination to participate, but clients won't.

"We are going to be making sure that our volunteers and our clients do not present any of the COVID-19 symptoms ... and make sure that everybody is safe," she said.

While the service is now officially in operation, Martineau said Nez Rouge doesn't know how many volunteers it will have this year.

"We have a certain amount of people who are completely driven and pumped and will register before the campaign begins," she explained. 

"But a huge percentage of our volunteers will register on the very first night that they participate."

As for the users of the service, Martineau asks that clients carry some cash on them when possible — not as a tip, but a donation.

"The donations that our clients make go toward a fundraiser for all of our organizations, organizations that are involved with local youth and amateur sport projects," she said. 

Quebecers are encouraged to check the list of operating communities to see if — and when — they'll have Nez Rouge service this year.