Driver fined $4K for breaking curfew, ignoring road closure in Montreal

“She was intercepted and received several tickets after she sneaked past the barrier where people were working.”

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A woman racked up $4,130 in fines and had to have her car towed for defying the curfew and ignoring a road closure on the Métropolitain expressway early Saturday.

The incident happened about 3:45 a.m., nearly two hours after a broken water main caused a sinkhole on Highway 40, forcing the closure of eastbound lanes near L’Acadie Blvd.

The 12-inch water main, at Crémazie Blvd. and Jeanne-Mance St., is more than 50 years old, the city said.

The Met was closed for repairs all day Saturday between l’Acadie and St-Laurent Blvd., and work continued on Sunday on two eastbound lanes. The highway was finally fully reopened at 11 p.m. on Sunday.

Provincial police stopped the woman after she ventured onto the closed section of highway as workers were trying to mend the break, said Stéphane Tremblay, a spokesperson for the Sûreté du Québec.

“She was intercepted and received several tickets after she sneaked past the barrier where people were working,” he said.

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She was ticketed $1,550 for breaking the curfew, $540 for driving on a closed road, $1,550 and four demerit points for reckless driving, since her actions could have endangered workers trying to repair the break, Tremblay said.

She was also ticketed $490 for obstructing police officers after she refused to identify herself. She also faces towing costs after her car got stuck in the hole caused by the water main break, he said.

In a separate incident early Saturday, a man was fined $1,550 for failing to respect the curfew, $1,500 for reckless driving and $540 for driving on a closed road after he took a closed exit to westbound Highway 138, towards the Mercier Bridge, from eastbound Highway 20.