Training

Becoming a highway safety officer: jobs, selection and training

Contrôle routier Québec hires first, then trains. The selection steps, training at the École nationale de police and the swearing-in, without going through the police officer path.

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October 10, 2026 · Lire en français

Training

To become a highway safety officer (contrôleur routier), the path is not that of a police officer. Contrôle routier Québec (Quebec's highway safety enforcement agency), the agency of the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ), hires first and trains afterward. The École nationale de police du Québec (Quebec's police academy) says so: the highway safety officers it trains are hired beforehand. This text applies to women and men highway safety officers alike.

The pay and powers of the job are described in our article on the highway safety officer. This one follows the path, from the job posting to the swearing-in.

Step 1: wait for the job posting

Everything starts with a job posting. The SAAQ writes that the application is filed on the Government of Quebec Careers portal. Québec.ca points to the same place, the Emplois en ligne site (emplois.carrieres.gouv.qc.ca), and names a single employer: Contrôle routier Québec.

On October 10, 2026, the SAAQ job postings page displayed "Aucun poste disponible" (no positions available). The Emplois en ligne site lets you create a job alert, according to Québec.ca.

Step 2: the selection process

The Contrôle routier Québec Careers page, modified on June 29, 2026, describes three steps:

filing the application on the Government of Quebec Careers portal
review of the application and an invitation to an exam session
the interview, the security check and the medical examination

Québec.ca, for its part, describes the process common to the whole public service, on a page up to date as of October 1, 2026. It has five steps: create your account on the Emplois en ligne site, apply, pre-selection, selection and acceptance of the job. The manager may use assessment tools, a job interview and reference checks.

Admission requirements are not published

Neither the SAAQ page, nor the Québec.ca page, nor the École's pages give the required diploma, the class of driver's licence or a minimum age. These conditions are written in the job posting, and none was displayed on October 10, 2026.

Québec.ca does, however, describe the particular features of the job, on a page up to date as of May 21, 2026:

40 hours a week
a schedule spread over 24 hours and 7 days
long distances to cover in a patrol vehicle
outdoor work
handling heavy equipment, for example a 22 kg wheel scale
the need to slide under trucks or buses

Step 3: initial training

Training follows hiring. The official sources do not give the same length. The SAAQ writes 17 weeks, partly in the workplace and partly at the École. The École writes 21 weeks, or 630 hours of learning. Québec.ca also writes 21 weeks, to be taken and passed as soon as you are hired.

The École specifies that a good proportion of the subjects is taught by Contrôle routier Québec staff. Its own instructors teach driving and physical intervention, and cover legal and ethics knowledge. The program targets 3 competencies: intervening in road safety, in penal procedure and as a special constable.

The subjects range from the laws and regulations related to the job to the Criminal Code, from driving a patrol vehicle to first aid. Our article on the École nationale de police du Québec describes the institution.

Paid training

The SAAQ speaks of "stimulating and paid training". It gives no amount. The 2023-2028 highway safety officers' collective agreement writes, in its section 25, that it is preferable for an employee appointed highway safety officer to have received the École's initial training or its equivalent.

Step 4: swearing-in and posting

After passing the training, the highway safety officer is sworn in at an official ceremony at the École and receives the title of special constable. The diploma is conditional on remaining employed, the École writes.

The new graduate then joins the highway safety enforcement service to which they are posted, according to the SAAQ. A period of continuing training and support is planned in the year after they start. Québec.ca writes that jobs are offered in several regions of Quebec. None of the pages consulted gives the list of services or inspection stations.

What changes on January 1, 2027

Section 38 of the Act assented to on April 2, 2026 (2026, chapter 7) makes SAAQ employees assigned to highway safety enforcement employees of the Ministère de la Sécurité publique (Quebec's public security department) as of January 1, 2027. No official page consulted on October 10, 2026 says whether the selection process or the training will change on that date.

This text summarizes public documents. It is neither legal advice nor union advice.

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Frequently asked questions

How do you become a highway safety officer?

You apply to a Contrôle routier Québec posting on the Government of Quebec's Emplois en ligne site. Then come an exam session, an interview, a security check and a medical examination, according to the SAAQ. The person hired takes the initial training, then is sworn in.

What training is required to become a SAAQ inspector?

The SAAQ highway safety officer takes an initial training program after being hired. The École nationale de police du Québec describes it as 21 weeks and 630 hours, the SAAQ as 17 weeks. The diploma required to apply is given in the job posting, no official page publishes it.

How do you become an inspector?

You cannot register yourself for highway safety officer training. The École nationale de police du Québec writes that highway safety officers are hired beforehand by Contrôle routier Québec. The process therefore starts with a job posting, not with an application for admission.

How long does highway safety officer training last?

The SAAQ writes 17 weeks, partly in the workplace and partly at the École. The École nationale de police du Québec and Québec.ca write 21 weeks. The École counts 630 hours of learning.

Is highway safety officer training paid?

Yes. The SAAQ writes that the training is paid, without giving an amount. The collective agreement scale appears in our article on the highway safety officer.

What is a highway safety officer's salary?

The 2023-2028 collective agreement sets the salary by job class and by step. Québec.ca shows, as an indication, a scale of $51,930 to $71,257 as of June 18, 2022, and specifies that the Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor scale takes precedence. The 2026 rates are in our article on the highway safety officer.

Are Quebec highway safety officers armed?

The initial training program described by the École covers intermediate weapons, such as the telescopic baton and pepper spray. The Government of Quebec announced on October 22, 2025 specialized training on the use of a firearm, in collaboration with the École, according to the same standards as those of police forces. The École's program page does not yet mention this training.