Road Safety

Right-Hand Drive Vehicles

A new ministerial order prohibiting the use of right-hand drive vehicles on the road network came into effect on April 24, 2010. Unlike the two previous ministerial orders, which were in effect for a period 180 days, this new order is permanent.

Exemptions
This new order provides for the same exemptions as the previous orders, with one exception. Thus, the following right-hand drive vehicles may be operated in Québec:

• Vehicles registered outside Québec (visiting Québec);
• Vehicles manufactured 25 years or more before the date of the application for access to the road network;
• Heavy vehicles, tool vehicles and vehicles required to make frequent stops along a road in performing work in connection with a public service;
• Vehicles belonging to a driving school;
• Vehicles purchased before April 29, 2009 and registered before March 31, 2011.

New Provisions
Owners of vehicles purchased before April 29, 2009 who were unable to register their vehicles by virtue of Ministerial Orders 2009-05 and 2009-15 have until March 31, 2011 to do so. It is every owner's responsibility to provide proof that the vehicle was purchased before April 29, 2009. This provision also applies to light vehicles (known under the name “Kei”).

Procedure
Original documents which show that the date of purchase was before April 29, 2009 must be submitted to an SAAQ mechanical inspection agent or service outlet, which will forward them to the head office for verification and authentication.

Once they are authenticated, the documents will be returned to the owner, along with the SAAQ's decision. If the decision is favourable, the owner may then follow the procedure that normally applies to all imported vehicles, which includes a mechanical inspection.

Light Right-Hand Drive Vehicle (“Kei”) 70 km/h Zone Restriction
Light right-hand drive vehicles which were restricted to 70 km/h zones in December 2009 may, at their owners' request, once again access the entire road network. A licence plate for vehicles with a limited area of operation (bearing the prefix “C”) may be replaced with a commercial or passenger vehicle licence plate. In addition, if the vehicle was purchased before April 29, 2009, access to the road network will be authorized on presentation of supporting documents. The procedure is the same as the one outlined above.

Reminders

• Light vehicles imported from Japan (“Kei”) were not subjected to crash tests before October 1, 1998. Therefore, these vehicles do not provide the same level of safety as passenger vehicles. The SAAQ recommends that you exercise caution when riding in a light vehicle and avoid using public roads with a posted speed limit over 70 km/h whenever possible.
• The prohibition from use on the road network covers right-hand drive vehicles; they are not designed to operate on the Québec road network. Drivers do not have an optimum field of vision, which can interfere with driving manoeuvres and the driver's ability to establish visual contact with the other road users.
• A study conducted by the SAAQ on accidents that occurred in 2007 and 2008 shows that operating these vehicles increases the risk of being involved in an accident by 30%.

Right-hand drive vehicles - passenger and light (“Kei”)

Registered before April 29, 2009	Purchased before April 29, 2009 and registered before March 31, 2011	Purchased after April 28, 2009 OR Purchased before April 29, 2009 and registered after March 31, 2011
May access the road network without any restriction. Note: We recommend that light vehicles be operated on roads where the speed limit is 70 km/h or less.	May access the road network without any restriction	May not access the network, except for: vehicles over 25 years old; heavy vehicles, tool vehicles and vehicles required to make frequent stops along a road in performing work in connection with a public service; vehicles belonging to a driving school.

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