Staying overnight at rest areas in Canada

British Columbia

British Columbia has more than 200 provincial rest areas, and the Ministry of Transportation and Transit states that overnight camping is not permitted at them. On its official TranBC blog, the ministry says you are free to use a rest area to get some sleep while travelling, but it discourages staying more than eight hours at a time and suggests BC Parks campgrounds for the night.

Brake-check areas and pullouts are meant for commercial vehicles: the ministry asks drivers of passenger vehicles not to use them as rest areas. The DriveBC map shows which rest areas can take large vehicles.

From October 1 to April 30, winter tires or chains are required on most B.C. highways (see Winter driving).

Sources: B.C. Government: provincial rest areas; TranBC (B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit): stopping at a BC rest area

Alberta

We found no Alberta law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area or whether you may sleep there overnight. Follow the signs at each stop; 511 Alberta lists the province’s rest areas and turnouts.

Away from the highway, random camping on public land is limited to 14 days in one spot, after which you must move at least 1 km for 72 hours. Along the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains, from Grande Prairie to Waterton Lakes National Park, anyone 18 or older needs a Public Lands Camping Pass to random camp; it is not needed in campgrounds that charge a nightly fee.

Sources: 511 Alberta: rest areas and turnouts; Alberta.ca: camping on public land; Alberta.ca: Public Lands Camping Pass

Saskatchewan

We found no Saskatchewan law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area. The provincial highways department’s design manual describes rest areas as safe places for motorists to rest, sleep, change drivers and check their vehicles, but it is a design standard, not a rule for travellers.

Rest areas in the partnership program, run by communities, non-profit groups or businesses, only have to be open from the Victoria Day long weekend to the Labour Day long weekend, so some may be closed outside the summer. Follow the signs at each stop.

Sources: Saskatchewan Highways and Transportation, Design Manual DM 3130: Rest Area Partnership Program

Manitoba

We found no Manitoba law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area or whether you may sleep there. Follow the signs at each stop.

Ontario

Under Ontario Regulation 206/06, no one may park a vehicle between 11 pm and 5 am on any part of a rest, service or other area built, maintained or operated by the Minister of Transportation, unless signs permit parking. Camping there is prohibited unless signs permit it, and parking is prohibited at any time where signs say so. The rules apply to every vehicle, trucks included.

Breaking these rules is an offence, with a fine of $50 to $200 under the Public Transportation and Highway Improvement Act. Check the signs when you arrive: they decide whether overnight parking is allowed at a particular site.

Sources: O. Reg. 206/06 (Use of Commuter Parking Lots, Transit Stations and Rest, Service and Other Areas), ss. 2–3; Public Transportation and Highway Improvement Act, s. 26

Quebec

Quebec’s Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable states that at all its rest areas (haltes routières) you may not stop for more than four hours or stay overnight. This does not apply to truck drivers who must complete their mandatory rest period. Leaving trash and unauthorized commercial activity are also forbidden, and loitering is not allowed.

The ministry’s network includes service areas with food and sometimes fuel, rest areas (some open only from mid-May to mid-October), lookouts and rest areas for truck drivers. The rule is published on Québec 511; we did not find the regulation it is based on.

From December 1 to March 15, winter tires are required on vehicles registered in Quebec, rental vehicles included (see Winter driving).

Sources: Québec 511: rest areas; Québec 511 : haltes routières

New Brunswick

We found no New Brunswick law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area or whether you may sleep there. Follow the signs at each stop.

Nova Scotia

We found no Nova Scotia law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area or whether you may sleep there. Follow the signs at each stop.

In 2002 the province launched a rest area strategy under which private operators received seed money and highway signs in exchange for services such as 24-hour washrooms and a set number of truck parking spaces.

Sources: Nova Scotia news release: rest area strategy (October 11, 2002)

Prince Edward Island

We found no Prince Edward Island law or official guidance on overnight stays at roadside rest areas. Follow the signs at each stop.

In provincial parks, the Provincial Parks Regulations forbid camping outside areas designated for camping, require a camping permit, and limit a stay to 14 consecutive days and nights without special permission.

Sources: Recreation Development Act, Provincial Parks Regulations, ss. 2 and 5

Newfoundland and Labrador

We found no Newfoundland and Labrador law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area or whether you may sleep there. Follow the signs at each stop.

Yukon

We found no Yukon law or official guidance on how long you may stay at a highway rest area or pullout, or whether you may sleep there. Follow the signs at each stop.

511 Yukon lists the rest areas and pullouts on each highway, with whether they have outhouses and garbage bins and whether they are maintained in winter. Some pullouts are for commercial vehicles only.

Sources: 511 Yukon: rest areas and pullouts

Northwest Territories

The Territorial Parks Act provides for wayside parks “for the enjoyment or convenience of the travelling public”, and several lie beside NWT highways. In every territorial park, camping means staying overnight, with or without a tent, and it is only allowed at a designated campsite under a permit, in a designated sleeping structure, or in an area the park superintendent designates in writing.

Day use of territorial parks runs from 7 am to 10:30 pm, and breaking park rules can lead to eviction or a fine. We found no territory-wide rule for highway pullouts outside parks; follow the signs.

Sources: Territorial Parks Act, ss. 3–4; Territorial Parks Regulations, ss. 1, 3 and 27; Wayside Parks Regulations; NWT Parks: rules and regulations

Resting when you are tired

Ontario’s official driver’s handbook says that if you notice signs of drowsiness, you should pull off the road and park in a safe, secure place, such as a well-lit rest stop or truck stop on a busy road, lock your doors and take a nap. Stimulants such as coffee are no substitute for sleep.

British Columbia’s transportation ministry suggests a 15-minute break about every two hours on long trips. How long you may stay at a rest area still depends on the province, as set out above.

Sources: Ontario MTO Driver’s Handbook: drowsy driving; TranBC (B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit): stopping at a BC rest area

Where to spend the night

For a full night’s sleep, use a campground: in a national, provincial or territorial park, or a private campground. Parks Canada takes reservations for camping at 40 destinations, and British Columbia’s transportation ministry points travellers to BC Parks campgrounds, many of them not far off the highway.

Some provinces allow camping on public (Crown) land away from the highway, with limits. In British Columbia, provincial policy lets anyone camp on Crown land for up to 14 consecutive days. In Alberta, random camping on public land is limited to 14 days in one spot, a Public Lands Camping Pass is needed along the Eastern Slopes of the Rockies, and camping is not allowed within 1 km of a road in some public land use zones.

Sources: Parks Canada: reservations; TranBC (B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit): stopping at a BC rest area; B.C. Land Use Policy: Permission, s. 8.2 (camping on Crown land); Alberta.ca: camping on public land; Alberta.ca: Public Lands Camping Pass

Truck drivers: hours of service

Drivers working for truck and bus carriers that cross provincial or national borders follow the federal Commercial Vehicle Drivers Hours of Service Regulations. They cover trucks, tractors and trailers with a registered gross vehicle weight over 4,500 kg and buses designed to seat more than 10 people, including the driver. Provinces and territories regulate these carriers on the federal government’s behalf, and set their own rules for trucking that stays within one province.

South of latitude 60°N, a driver may not drive after 13 hours of driving or 14 hours on duty in a day, and must then take at least 8 consecutive hours off duty (ss. 12–13). No driving is allowed once 16 hours have passed since the end of the last 8-hour off-duty period (s. 13(3)). Drivers need at least 10 hours off duty in a day, 2 of them outside the 8-hour block (s. 14), and at least 24 consecutive hours off duty in any 14 days (s. 25).

Drivers follow one of two cycles: at most 70 hours on duty in 7 days (cycle 1), or 120 hours in 14 days with 24 consecutive hours off before passing 70 hours (cycle 2) (ss. 26–27). Taking 36 (cycle 1) or 72 (cycle 2) consecutive hours off resets the cycle (s. 28).

North of latitude 60°N, which covers Yukon and the Northwest Territories, the limits are 15 hours of driving or 18 hours on duty before at least 8 consecutive hours off, with no driving more than 20 hours after the last such break (s. 39), and cycles of 80 hours in 7 days or 120 hours in 14 days (ss. 51–52).

At rest areas: Quebec’s four-hour limit does not apply to truck drivers completing their mandatory rest, and Quebec’s modernized rest areas have parking reserved for heavy vehicles. Ontario’s 11 pm to 5 am parking ban applies to trucks too, unless signs allow parking. In British Columbia, brake-check areas and pullouts are kept for commercial vehicles.

Sources: Commercial Vehicle Drivers Hours of Service Regulations, SOR/2005-313; Transport Canada: motor carriers, commercial vehicles and drivers; Québec 511: rest areas; Québec.ca : trouver une halte routière; O. Reg. 206/06 (Use of Commuter Parking Lots, Transit Stations and Rest, Service and Other Areas), ss. 2–3; TranBC (B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit): stopping at a BC rest area

Winter driving

British Columbia: from October 1 to April 30, winter tires or chains are required on most provincial highways, marked by signs; on some routes away from mountain passes and high-snowfall areas the requirement ends March 31. A legal winter tire carries the M+S mark or the three-peaked mountain and snowflake symbol and has at least 3.5 mm of tread. The rules apply to out-of-province and rental vehicles; most rental vehicles have M+S tires, which meet the minimum. Motorhomes and other RVs must also obey the signs (M+S tires at least, chains recommended), and commercial vehicles of 11,794 kg or more must carry steel chains on most major highways.

Quebec: from December 1 to March 15, winter tires are required on motor vehicles registered in Quebec, rental vehicles included; the fine is $200 to $300. The requirement does not apply to vehicles registered outside Quebec, and motorhomes are among the listed exceptions.

Sources: B.C. Government: designated winter tire and chain routes; B.C. Government: passenger vehicle tire and chain requirements; B.C. Government: recreational vehicle and trailer tire and chain requirements; B.C. Government: out-of-province visitors and rental vehicles; B.C. Government: commercial vehicle tire and chain requirements; Québec.ca: requirements for winter tires