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The Sûreté du Québec confirmed Tuesday that this year’s construction holiday death toll of 22 was nearly double that recorded in 2022. Eighteen people died over the past two weeks on the province’s highways, while another four lost their lives on off-road trails.
That total is a grim increase compared with the 13 deaths recorded in 2022, when 12 people died on roads and one perished on an off-road trail.
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Last week, and seeing the spike in the number of fatalities, the provincial police force renewed its call for caution on Quebec’s roads even though the holiday period was only halfway through.
“There are 20 families who, instead of going to the zoo or camping or fishing or visiting a water park, are going home to organize a funeral,” an SQ spokesperson said in a video posted on social media.
This year’s construction vacation period, which ran from July 23 to Aug. 5, saw the SQ record 13 serious collisions on the highways they patrol as well as four more on off-road thoroughfares. That’s six more than on both road networks a year earlier.
The SQ explained that driver distraction, illegal passing, speed and impaired driving remain the leading causes of deadly collisions.
This year, most of the collisions were attributed to the driver conduct, including excessive speed.
Since the vacation season is continuing in Quebec, the SQ is urging drivers to remain cautious on the province’s highways.
Number of construction holiday deaths should cause ‘collective shock,’ SQ says
Almost one-third of Quebec road deaths occur within these 72 days
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