Those planning on heading to Montreal’s Old Port to ring in the New Year with lights, music and winter magic should also be prepared for crowds and potential “technical issues.” The Grand Minuit is the marquee event for New Year’s Eve celebrations in the city and is free. Organizers are hoping to avoid a repeat of last year’s celebrations when the fireworks suddenly ended shortly after they started going off. Multicolore, the company organizing the event, said a technical issue needed to be resolved and safety protocol completed, which caused the delay. This year, fireworks followed by music and dancing are again planned at the Jacques-Quartier Quai to the west of the Grande Roue de Montreal ferris wheel. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. tonight, and DJ Tupi Collective will kick the party off. The schedule is as follows: Police will close the streets to vehicle traffic from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., depending on the size of crowds. Taking public transit or walking is generally advised for those heading to Old Montreal. The Montreal metro green, orange and yellow lines will run until 3 a.m. The following streets will be closed in the area: The streets will be closed until 2 a.m. on Jan. 1. Those taking a taxi or Uber will be dropped off on Saint-Antoine Street in front of Champ-de-Mars.
