SAAQ seeks to cut costs for licenses, vehicle registration

Being a driver in Quebec could be more affordable in the years to come.

The provincial automobile board (SAAQ) is proposing to cut the costs of both vehicle registration and a driver's license for 2016 by about one-third, one decade after beginning a series of price hikes.

In 2006 it cost $43/year for a driver's license, but the SAAQ then began increasing the cost -- and demanding licensed motorcycle riders pay double the cost.

The SAAQ said it was necessary because in 2004 the bureau was paying more money to compensate crash victims and was under-financed.

Now the SAAQ says it is in better financial shape, thanks to the increase in funding and fewer collisions, deaths and injuries on Quebec's roads.

According to the proposals in 2015 it will cost a driver with no demerit points $64 to renew their license. In 2016 that price will drop to $55.

Motorcycle riders should see a $2 drop in contributions, from $64 to $62.

Registering most vehicles could get cheaper, with the cost of registering dropping from $120 in 2015 to $64 in 2016.

Riders of the most common type of motorcycles, 400cc+ non-sport bikes, could see their contribution drop $4.

However riders of smaller motorcycles and of sport bikes will pay much more in 2016.

The SAAQ wants the price to register a sub-400cc bike to rise $43 to $329, and go up again in 2017 to $335, while the cost of registering a sport bike will rise $148 to $1154/year.

Smaller motorcycles have become more popular in recent years as manufacturers began providing more new models for the North American market.

The SAAQ says the number of highway deaths and serious injuries has dropped considerably from its high point in 2005, and last year fewer than 400 people died on Quebec's roads, even as 800,000 more vehicles were added.

Invitation to respond

The SAAQ is now inviting feedback from the public before public hearings take place in March in Quebec City and Montreal.

Individuals have until Feb. 16, 2015 to hand in a brief, which has to be done both via email and in hardcopy.

More information on how to contact the "Panel of Experts" is available here.

CAA-Quebec issued a communiqué saying it was pleased with the price reductions, and said it had been asking for them since 2011 when it was evident the SAAQ was returning to financial stability.