Weird Canadian Driving Laws and Other Strange Rules of the Road

Let’s face it; lawmakers sometimes come up with some strange rules for us to obey.  In all fairness though, often these weird laws that are still on the books are from the past where they were clearly necessary even though they are no longer relevant today. With others though, it’s harder to imagine what incidents would have precipitated the need for such laws. For example, in Alabama, it is illegal for a driver to be blindfolded while operating a vehicle. Was this a big enough problem that they had to enact a statute to correct it? Whatever the reason, when you’re driving in Alabama, be sure to take your blindfold off!

Although there are some strange laws in the U.S., Canada is not exempt and has also enacted some weird rules of the road. The following is a sampling of some of the strangest driving laws Canada has, so next time you’re out on the road, you can be sure you’re following all of the rules!

1.) Montreal is a beautiful city, but it’s also a place that’s quite strict about what you can and can’t do with your car. For example, for sale signs are not permitted in the windows of moving vehicles. So, if you’re selling your car, be sure to take the sign down before you turn the keys.

In addition, Montreal seems to have a number of different laws regarding the rules of parking including:

• You may not park a car in such a way that it is blocking your own driveway. (Your OWN driveway!)
• If you have parked your car in the street (not in front of your driveway, of course), you can forget about washing it because it’s illegal to do so.
• Cars parked in public places must be locked, and their windows must be down to less than the width of a hand. (This one boggles the mind a little. What if it rains or snows, do people in Montreal just deal with wet interiors?

Of course, the strangest law that Quebec has is that you aren’t allowed to turn right on a red light. Since it’s expected and legal to turn right in Ontario, those travelers going into Quebec would do well to remember this law unless they want a ticket.

2.) In Ontario, the average speed limit for cars on most roads is 80 km/hour, but bicycles have the right of way. Those bicycles have to be fast!

Because a lot of the laws in Ontario are from the past, some of them have to do with driving non-motorized forms or are about more public forms of transportation. Because they have something to do with the roads on which you drive, we still thought they were worth including.

• If you decide to ride a one-horse-open-sleigh on the highway, make sure that two bells are attached to either the sleigh or the harness. No bells or one bell could earn you a $5 fine.
• In Toronto, it’s illegal to ride a streetcar on Sunday if you’ve been eating garlic. No need to throw away the garlic for good though, just save it until Monday.

3.) The strangest provincial law regarding the road has to come from New Brunswick. To break the law in this Atlantic province, you simply need to drive on the road. Apparently, the streets in New Brunswick are not meant for driving on.

Some of these weird statutes make it hard for us to obey the law, because they’re pretty obscure. However, ignorance of the law isn’t an excuse for breaking it, so now that you know, while you’re in New Brunswick you’ll have to either drive in the fields or start walking!

6 Responses to “Weird Canadian Driving Laws and Other Strange Rules of the Road”

1. David Says:
   October 22nd, 2008 at 11:03 am

   I think you got it wrong, you cannot leave your windows open *more* than the width of a hand, so that a thief cannot open you door from the outside, which would completely nullify the law. This law has been passed to diminish the number of car thefts in the Montreal region. I do agree though that this law is awfully patronizing.

2. brad Says:
   October 22nd, 2008 at 12:17 pm

   “Cars parked in public places must be locked, and their windows must be down to less than the width of a hand. (This one boggles the mind a little. What if it rains or snows, do people in Montreal just deal with wet interiors?”

   let’s say the width of a hand is 1 inch. 0 inches is less than one inch, so they can have their windows not down at all. Nothing mind boggling about it except why you think a closed window would make the interior wet.

3. John Says:
   October 22nd, 2008 at 5:34 pm

   ” Cars parked in public places must be locked, and their windows must be down to less than the width of a hand. ”

   I believe they mean you are not allowed to have your window down more than the width of a hand — not that you “must” have it down… probably to deter people frmo stealing (and thus police having to deal with it). Stupid law anyway but just wanted to clarify what they most likely meant.

4. web Says:
   October 23rd, 2008 at 4:00 am

   I’ve also heard California has a few … eg. no texting while driving. Duh!

5. steelfrog Says:
   October 23rd, 2008 at 12:49 pm

   “Of course, the strangest law that Quebec has is that you aren’t allowed to turn right on a red light. Since it’s expected and legal to turn right in Ontario, those travelers going into Quebec would do well to remember this law unless they want a ticket.”

   It’s perfectly legal for us (Quebec) to turn right on red lights. The only exception is in Montreal where’s it not allowed.

6. john Says:
   October 23rd, 2008 at 1:51 pm

   Also in Toronto on any day, you can get fined for farting on a streetcar.

   Although pretty harsh, if you’ve been sardine’d in a streetcar during rush hour you would agree that someone dropping a stinker would definitely not make things pleasant.

   Now enforcing it, I’d like to see that, because I don’t think it has ever happened, at least not that I am aware of.

Leave a Reply