What's open and closed this Remembrance Day in Ottawa

The National Remembrance Day Ceremony will be held once again in downtown Ottawa Friday as a way for Canadians to pause in a collective moment of reflection. 

The ceremony will be held at the National War Memorial and begin around 10:30 a.m. 

With the easing of pandemic restrictions, the ceremony will again have parades and wreath-laying, which were absent last year. The Royal Canadian Legion hasn't announced masking or distancing requirements.

Spectators are welcome and people in the area can expect a 21-gun salute around 11 a.m. and flypasts around 11:05 and 11:30 a.m.

CBC will broadcast Remembrance Day specials on radio, television and online. Other ceremonies will be held in communities across Ottawa, including one at Beechwood Cemetery.

Food, drink and shopping

• Most retail businesses will be closed until 12:30 p.m. in accordance with Ottawa's Remembrance Day bylaw. This includes major malls, LCBOs and The Beer Store.
• Restaurants, small grocery stores, small pharmacies, convenience stores and gas stations are among the exemptions.

Museums and galleries

• The Canadian War Museum and the Canadian Museum of History will be open with free admission. 
• The Diefenbunker is offering free admission to veterans, active military personnel, and their accompanying family members. 
• The Canadian Museum of Nature, the Canada Science and Technology Museum, the Canada Aviation and Space Museum and the Ottawa Art Gallery will be open. 
• The National Gallery of Canada is also open, but later than usual: from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. 

City of Ottawa

• All client service centres, including the government service centre at 110 Laurier Ave. W. and the service centre at Ben Franklin Place, will be closed.
• The city's Provincial Offences Court will be closed.
• Green bin waste, recycling and garbage will be collected as normal.
• The 311 call centre will be staffed to respond to urgent matters.
• The Ottawa Public Health vaccine booking line is closed.
• The sexual health clinic and Site program are closed, as is the supervised consumption site at 179 Clarence St. The Site mobile van runs 5 to 11:30 p.m.
• The Bernard Grandmaître respite centre is closed.
• The Business Licensing Centre at 735 Industrial Avenue will be closed.
• The Trail Road waste facility will be open.

Transit and traffic

• Veterans who wear their medals or uniforms during National Veterans' Week, from Nov. 5 to Nov. 11, can ride OC Transpo, Para Transpo and Société de transport de l'Outaouais (STO) buses and paratransit service for no charge. Companions accompanying veterans also ride at no charge. Use the video chat at LRT stations to access this.
• All transit vehicles will pull over to the side of the road at 11 a.m. for two minutes of silence, if safe to do so.
• OC Transpo and the STO will operate on normal weekday schedules.

The following streets will be closed from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday:

• Elgin Street, from Laurier Avenue West to Wellington Street.
• Wellington from Rideau Street to Elgin.
• Queen Street, from Metcalfe Street to Elgin.

There will be intermittent road closures during that same time between Nicholas Street, Laurier, Elgin and Wellington.

Parking

• All City of Ottawa parking regulations and restrictions will apply.
• Free parking at City Hall will be available between 7:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. to veterans who wear their medals or uniforms or who have veterans' licence plates.

Recreational services

• All facilities will be open for drop-in activities. Most registered programs at swimming pools will operate.

Libraries

• All branches and services of the Ottawa Public Library will be closed.

Municipal child care

• All municipal child-care locations will be closed.