{"id":9592,"date":"2025-11-15T08:51:12","date_gmt":"2025-11-15T11:51:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/2025\/11\/15\/non-stop-tires-quebec-garages-slammed-ahead-of-dec-1-winter-tire-deadline\/"},"modified":"2025-11-15T08:51:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-15T11:51:12","slug":"non-stop-tires-quebec-garages-slammed-ahead-of-dec-1-winter-tire-deadline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/2025\/11\/15\/non-stop-tires-quebec-garages-slammed-ahead-of-dec-1-winter-tire-deadline\/","title":{"rendered":"Non-stop tires: Quebec garages slammed ahead of Dec. 1 winter tire deadline"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>OttawaWith freezing rain in the forecast and a winter deadline around the corner, drivers in Quebec are scrambling for appointments to get their tires changed.With freezing rain on the way, mechanics warn many drivers still haven\u2019t made the switchCameron Mahler  \u00b7 CBC News  \u00b7 Posted: Nov 15, 2025 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Quebec\u2019s winter tire deadline is Dec. 1. Failing to make the change in time could result in fines ranging from $200 to $300, plus fees. (Charles Contant\/CBC)With freezing rain in the forecast and a winter deadline around the corner, drivers in Quebec are scrambling for appointments to get their tires changed.Many are discovering they\u2019ve left it too late.\u201dWe\u2019re pretty much booked for a good two weeks solid,\u201d said Marc Prudhomme, owner of Garage Nistech in Gatineau.Freezing rain is expected across parts of western Quebec this weekend, and it\u2019s coming just ahead of the province\u2019s Dec. 1 cutoff when summer and all-season tires must be replaced with winter ones.Drivers who don\u2019t make the change and who are involved in collisions or traffic stops after the deadline can face fines ranging from $200 to $300, plus fees.For Prudhomme, that means a packed schedule.\u201cThe past couple of weeks it\u2019s just been non-stop tires pretty much every day,\u201d he said.Staff shortage isn\u2019t helpingPrudhomme said bookings started unusually early this year, prompted by an early November snowfall.That led to an \u201cunusual\u201d number of calls in just a couple days, he said.He said a staff shortage has also posed problems, but added it\u2019s an industry-wide issue.\u201dBack in the day, we used to have tire-specific changers that would come in part time, just for the rush, and get it done for us,\u201d he said.\u201cI don\u2019t know why, but it\u2019s getting harder and harder to hire these people.\u201dDespite widespread warnings of slippery roads and the looming deadline, many drivers are still procrastinating. Automotive expert Jesse Caron with CAA Quebec said some still wait until the last possible moment to make the switch.\u201dFor those people who have not yet made an appointment, good luck,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s probably no hope if you\u2019re calling today.\u201dCaron said CAA-approved service providers are telling the association that nearly one-third of their regular customers still haven\u2019t booked appointments.Caron said swapping tires isn\u2019t just the law, it\u2019s also highly advisable to ensure safe road travel.\u201dWhen the temperature drops below 7 C on average, all-season tires become harder,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s simply less grip on any kind of surface, even if it is dry.\u201dBusting tire mythsCaron also wants to bust the myth that installing winter tires too early causes damage.\u201cIf you installed your winter tires as soon as mid-October \u2026 they won\u2019t degrade prematurely,\u201d he said, adding that the occasional warm day is not enough to harm them.He also stressed the difference between all-season and all-weather tires, explaining that only all-weather tires with the mountain snowflake symbol meet Quebec\u2019s legal requirement. But even those are a poorer option than winter-specific tires, he said.Prudhomme said people should know by now that this is the time of year to make the switch.\u201dEverybody seems to be surprised that the snow is coming. But at the start of November, it always snows,\u201d he said.While winter tires are mandatory in Quebec between Dec. 1 and Mar. 15, Ontario has no such regulation.ABOUT THE AUTHORCameron is an Ottawa-based journalist with CBC News. He\u2019s worked with CBC Kitchener-Waterloo covering elections, local news, and city council. Cameron also interned with CBC Toronto\u2019s Enterprise Unit. Contact Cameron with story ideas at cameron.mahler@cbc.ca. Follow Cameron on X @cam_mahlerWith files from Charlotte Tremblay<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>OttawaWith freezing rain in the forecast and a winter deadline around the corner, drivers in Quebec are scrambling for appointments to get their tires changed.With freezing rain on the way, mechanics warn many drivers still haven\u2019t made the switchCameron Mahler \u00b7 CBC News \u00b7 Posted: Nov 15, 2025 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: 2 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":9593,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[118,1047,1],"tags":[116,1046],"class_list":["post-9592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-indigenous","category-ontario","category-uncategorized","tag-indigenous","tag-ontario"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9592"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9592\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9593"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}