Ottawa

Wellington Street reopens in front of Parliament Hill Friday afternoon

The stretch of Wellington Street in front of Parliament Hill in Ottawa will reopen to vehicles at some point on Friday afternoon, the city says.

Stretch of street was closed about 15 months ago after truck convoy protest

Workers in orange and yellow use a tank and hose to paint a bike lane green.
Workers paint a bike lane green on Wellington Street in downtown Ottawa Thursday, the day before this part of the road reopens to public vehicles. (Reno Patry/CBC)

The stretch of Wellington Street in front of Parliament Hill will reopen to vehicles at some point Friday afternoon, according to the city.

The four-lane road in that area was taken over by vehicles and protesters during the truck convoy protest, which lasted from the end of January 2022 until the Family Day long weekend the following month.

It never reopened to public vehicles, with barriers restricting it to parliamentary vehicles and active transportation between Bank and Elgin streets as politicians and experts debated its future, including how, or if, to reopen it.

Ottawa city council voted in February to bring vehicles back as the conversation continues about its long-term future — including whether it should become part of the parliamentary precinct, which would make the Parliamentary Protection Service in charge of security instead of Ottawa police.

A drone photo of parliamentary and office buildings at sunset.
A view from a drone of Wellington Street and the Parliament Hill area looking west earlier this month. (Michel Aspirot/CBC)

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said this past February that it was time to remove the "ugly" barricades and bring activity back to the street.

Council also voted to add temporary bike lanes and flex posts between Sussex Drive and Lyon Street.

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