Highway safety officer: salary, powers and differences with a police officer

A highway safety officer in Quebec (contrôleur routier) is not a police officer. They are a peace officer of Contrôle routier Québec (Quebec's highway safety enforcement agency), the agency of the Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ) that monitors the road transportation of people and goods. Their salary ranges from $59,506 to $81,651 a year since April 1, 2026, according to their collective agreement. This text applies to women and men highway safety officers alike.

A peace officer, under the Highway Safety Code

Section 519.67 of the Highway Safety Code allows the SAAQ to designate any member of its staff to act as a highway safety officer. The same section writes that highway safety officers are peace officers competent to ensure the monitoring and control of the road transportation of people and goods. The Loi sur la Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec includes this monitoring among the Société's functions.

Section 519.68 subjects the highway safety officer to the rules of police ethics. Section 519.69 allows an agreement with the Minister of Public Security for them to act as a special constable, particularly when they observe a Criminal Code offence in the course of their duties.

What the highway safety officer checks

Section 519.67 lists the vehicles and laws within their jurisdiction:

• any heavy vehicle
• any road vehicle designed or used to carry out transportation or work, paid or not, regardless of its mass
• passenger vehicles, only for load, dimensions, securing of loads, mechanical condition or the transportation of dangerous goods
• the Loi concernant le transport rémunéré de personnes par automobile
• the Loi concernant les propriétaires, les exploitants et les conducteurs de véhicules lourds

The highway safety officer therefore does not monitor motorist traffic the way a police officer does.

Their powers

Section 519.70 allows them to inspect any vehicle, enter it and open or have opened any container or compartment. They may require that the vehicle be driven to a safe place located no more than 15 kilometres from the place of interception. Section 519.71 allows them to enter, at any reasonable hour, the establishment of the owner or operator of a heavy vehicle and examine the registers and records there.

A government news release of October 22, 2025 states that highway safety officers spend about 70% of their time on patrol.

The highway safety officer's salary

The Convention collective des contrôleurs routiers 2023-2028, published by the Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor, gives annual rates for a 40-hour week. Here is the scale in effect from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027.

Source: Schedule 3 of the collective agreement. Article 41.08 also provides an adjustment tied to the consumer price index, of no more than 1.00%, which does not appear in this table.

Article 19.01 of the agreement moves the employee up one step per year. Article 41.01 sets the hourly rate by dividing the annual rate by 2,087.2. Editorial calculation for the nominal class: $28.51 an hour at the first step and $39.12 at the last.

The agreement adds premiums: 4% of the hourly rate in the evening, 5% on weekends, and 11%, 12% or 14% at night depending on seniority. Québec.ca shows an older scale, from $51,930 to $71,257 as of June 18, 2022, and specifies that the Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor scale takes precedence.

Hiring and training

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

Contrôle routier Québec hires first, then trains. The SAAQ speaks of 17 weeks of paid training, partly in the workplace and partly at the École nationale de police du Québec (Quebec's police academy). The École, for its part, describes a 21-week program, or 630 hours, and Québec.ca also writes 21 weeks. After training, the highway safety officer is sworn in and receives the title of special constable, according to the École.

Québec.ca describes a schedule spread over 24 hours and 7 days. No highway safety officer job posting was displayed on October 10, 2026. The education and driver's licence requirements are given in the job posting when it appears.

The service weapon and the move to Public Security

On March 6, 2025, the Tribunal administratif du travail rendered a decision on the health and safety of highway safety officers. Contrôle routier Québec then suspended its unplanned roadside interventions. On October 22, 2025, the government announced its decision to equip highway safety officers with a service weapon, with training given in collaboration with the École nationale de police du Québec.

The Act assented to on April 2, 2026 (2026, chapter 7) amends the Highway Safety Code as of January 1, 2027. Highway safety officers will become employees of the Ministère de la Sécurité publique (Quebec's public security department). The new section 519.68 will give them jurisdiction to prevent and repress crime throughout Quebec. The SAAQ will keep the highway safety officers in mechanical inspection.

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

Further reading

• Becoming a highway safety officer: jobs, selection and training
• Contrôle routier Québec: mandate, inspection stations and the difference with a police officer
• Military police officer: role, training and pay in the Canadian Armed Forces

Frequently asked questions

What is a highway safety officer's salary?

The 2023-2028 collective agreement sets the salary of a nominal-class highway safety officer between $59,506 and $81,651 a year, from April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027. The scale has 8 steps and the employee climbs one per year. These rates apply to a 40-hour week, without premiums.

What is a highway safety officer's salary in Quebec?

Converted to an hourly rate using the agreement's rule, the salary ranges from $28.51 to $39.12 for the nominal class. This is an editorial calculation: the annual rate divided by 2,087.2. A principal-class highway safety officer earns $80,441 to $88,330 a year.

How do you become a highway safety officer in Quebec?

You file your application on the Government of Quebec Careers portal when a posting appears. Then come an exam session, an interview, a security check and a medical examination, according to the Contrôle routier Québec Careers page. The person hired then takes the initial training, given partly at the École nationale de police du Québec.

Are highway safety officers armed?

The Government of Quebec announced on October 22, 2025 its decision to equip highway safety officers with a service weapon. The news release provides for qualification steps and training on the use of a firearm, according to the same standards as those of police forces. No official document consulted on October 10, 2026 says how many highway safety officers already carry this weapon.

What training is required to become a SAAQ inspector?

The SAAQ highway safety officer takes initial training after being hired. The SAAQ states 17 weeks, the École nationale de police du Québec states 21 weeks and 630 hours. The program covers transportation laws, the Criminal Code, driving a patrol vehicle and first aid.

Sources

• LégisQuébec, Highway Safety Code, chapter C-24.2, sections 519.67 to 519.71, up to date as of August 12, 2026
• LégisQuébec, Loi sur la Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec, chapter S-11.011, up to date as of August 12, 2026
• Secrétariat du Conseil du trésor, Convention collective des contrôleurs routiers 2023-2028, articles 19.01, 41.01, 41.08, 43.01 to 43.03 and Schedule 3, consulted on October 10, 2026
• Éditeur officiel du Québec, Loi visant à favoriser la sécurité et le sentiment de sécurité de la population et modifiant diverses dispositions, 2026, chapter 7, sections 11, 12, 17, 38 and 62, assented to on April 2, 2026
• Gouvernement du Québec, Le gouvernement du Québec autorise le port d'une arme à feu pour les contrôleurs routiers, news release of October 22, 2025
• Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec, Sécurité des contrôleurs routiers dans l'exercice de leurs fonctions, décision du Tribunal administratif du travail, news release of March 6, 2025
• Gouvernement du Québec, Contrôleuse routière ou contrôleur routier, up to date as of May 21, 2026
• Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec, Carrière en contrôle routier, up to date as of June 29, 2026
• École nationale de police du Québec, Contrôle routier, le programme, consulted on October 10, 2026