MONTREAL —
As of Monday at 8 a.m. a new drive-thru COVID-19 screening testing facility will open at Place des Festivals in downtown Montreal.
It will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., and people can come by car or can walk to the site.
The city will close roads in the area including Maisonneuve Blvd. where cars will line up on heading east to west, and be triaged in their vehicles.
If in preliminary screening, citizens present coronavirus symptoms (fevers, coughs or difficulty breathing) they will be directed to the testing facility and will be able to park their vehicles.
If they don’t need a test, they can walk or drive away.
The testing area will be in the main site of Place des Festivals.
Test results will be available within 24 to 72 hours and officials estimate that they will be able to perform around 2,000 – 2,500 tests in a day.
Citizens do not need to be directed to the testing site from the COVID-19 hotlines, and can simply show up.
In the meantime, Hotel Dieu hospital will be closed for appointments or testing. The hospital may still be used for testing within the hospital network.
There will remain three testing facilities in Montreal that include one at CHU Sainte-Justine (for children) and one in Beaconsfield.
While waiting for testing, health officials say they will ensure that overcrowding is kept to a minimum following complaints about the testing facility at Hotel Dieu where people often crowded the entrances while waiting to be tested.
