From the cost of buying a home, to the climate changes hitting North America, many of the top issues for voters are also top of mind for young people, and central to their futures. So why do young people show up to the polls in fewer numbers than other generations, and what can be done to get more of them to cast their ballot? 

In the shadow of U.S. tariffs, reviving pipeline projects has been up for discussion in this federal election campaign, even in Quebec, where opposition has been strong in the past. So how did Montreal go from the city where half a million people marched for climate action, to a place where the environment seems barely on the ballot?

Montreal rents are rising sharply. The median price of a single family home has more than doubled in a decade. So what can the next federal government do to get housing built more quickly?

Usually, it might be Quebec sovereignty that’s on the table come election time. But this time around, with U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats of tariffs and annexation, some Quebec voters, like those in the rest of Canada, have Canadian sovereignty on their minds. We’ll look at what that might mean for the electoral map in Quebec.

Those white plastic temporary car shelters — known as tempos — pop up in driveways in many Montreal driveways each winter. Those who love ‘em say they save the time and hassle of digging out their cars after a snowstorm. Those who hate ‘em say they’re an eyesore at best and a potential hazard at worst. We’ll hear how they became a Quebec winter phenomenon and why, more than fifty years after they hit the market, some Montreal residents are pushing to be allowed to put them up in their driveways. Correction: The original version of this episode incorrectly referred to Suzanne De Larochellière as a city councillor instead of a borough councillor.

For some it was the choppy sound of a video call. For others, it was tuning into the daily news briefings. For others still, it was the voice of a patient saying goodbye to loved ones who couldn’t be with them in their final hour. Five years after Quebec declared a public health emergency over COVID-19, five Montrealers reflect on what they remember most about the early days of the pandemic and how their lives have changed since. 

Many Montreal families may be heading off-island to hit the ski slopes for March break this week. But throughout most of the 20th century, you could find downhill ski runs on and around Mount Royal, complete with tow ropes, T-bars and even a 100-ft long ski jump! We'll hear why downhill skiing disappeared from the heart of Montreal, and why not everyone agrees over whether it should come back.

To shake off those winter blues, we’re bringing you one of our favourite episodes from the archives. We follow an urban explorer who has walked nearly every alleyway in Montreal and hear how alleys helped shape the development of and the social life of many Montreal neighbourhoods.

When Montreal gets walloped with snow like it just did, it takes days to get the streets and sidewalks cleared. A century ago some streets just didn’t get cleared at all. From horse-drawn plows to the snowblowers, plows and trucks we use today, we’ll look at how snow clearing has evolved in Montreal. And we’ll hear from some Montreal researchers who are working to design the snow removal of the future using artificial intelligence.  

As of this month, if you buy an electric car in Quebec, you’ll be paying for it entirely out of your own pocket. The federal rebate program for electric vehicles has ended early and the Quebec program is on pause until April, before being phased out in 2027. Both Quebec and Canada have goals to eliminate the sale of new internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035. But with less subsidy money on the table and with all the economic uncertainty of U.S. tariff threats, can we still meet that goal?