2023 Quebec Spring Thaw Period

13 February 2023

We at Sealand constantly strive to provide reliable and innovative products to our customers. To continue offering our high-quality reliability, we would like to alert you to changes in Quebec weight Levels for 2023 based on the Spring Thaw Period.

The Quebec Ministry of Transport has issued its regulations for the annual Spring Thaw Period. This restriction is placed by the local authorities to account for road network’s lower weight bearing capacity during the annual thaw period. The weight restrictions apply to all truck movement to and from Quebec. To comply with the regulations – Sealand will implement the following maximum acceptable cargo weight restrictions:

For Cross Border shipments, we are glad to be able to offer:

Cross Border Shipments

Container type	Dry	Reefer	Surcharge
Container type 20'	Dry Up to 47,000 lbs	Reefer Up to 46,000 lbs	Surcharge N/A
Container type 20'	Dry 47,001 - 52,910 lbs	Reefer 46,001 – 48,000 lbs	Surcharge $390
Container type 40'	Dry Up to 44,000 lbs	Reefer Up to 44,000 lbs	Surcharge N/A
Container type 40'	Dry 44,001 to 53,000 lbs	Reefer 44,001 to 53,000 lbs	Surcharge $390

Montreal to Toronto and vise versa

Container type	Dry	Reefer	Surcharge
Container type 20'	Dry Up to 42,000 lbs	Reefer Up to 49,600 lbs	Surcharge N/A
Container type 20'	Dry 42,001 - 52,000 lbs	Reefer 49,601 to 53,500 lbs	Surcharge $390
Container type 40'	Dry Up to 44,000 lbs	Reefer Up to 40,000 lbs	Surcharge N/A
Container type 40'	Dry 44,001 to 54,010 lbs	Reefer 44,001 to 50,500 lbs	Surcharge $390

Weight restrictions are not limited to the total cargo weight in the container. Restrictions require proper weight distribution over the axles.

2023 Thaw Period Dates*

Zone 1: From Monday, March 6 (00:01) to Friday, May 5 (23:59)
Zone 2: From Monday, March 13 (00:01) to Friday, May 12 (23:59)
Zone 3: From Monday, March 20 (00: 01) to Friday, May 19 (23:59)

Please refer to below map, should guidance be required on zone geography:

Thaw Zones - Transports et Mobilité durable Québec (gouv.qc.ca)

*Thaw Period Dates are subject to change without any notification and are dependent on weather conditions. Please refer to the Quebec Ministry of Transport for the most update to date details

We would like to take this opportunity to say thank you for doing business with us. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to your local sales or customer service representative.