More than a billion for the roads of Montreal, which projects are concerned?
Highway 40 in Montreal
Quebec is investing $1.3 billion in 28 projects to repair, rebuild or expand Montreal's road network. These expenses will be spread over two years. Métro details for you the projects that will be funded.
Megaprojects
Three projects receive a check from Quebec in excess of $50 million for the 2023-2025 period. These are very high-cost but essential projects to replace critical aging infrastructure in Greater Montreal. Note that the total cost of each project is different from the announced expenditure granted to it, because the latter only concerns the period 2023-2025.
Not surprisingly, one of the three major projects is the repair of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel, which is already well underway and is causing traffic disruptions between Longueuil and Montreal. This work, at a total cost of $2.5 billion, will last until 2026.
Among the major expenses, we also find the reconstruction of the Île-aux-Tourtes bridge, which made headlines in 2021 after closing due to the weakness, due to the age, of the structure. The total cost of this project is $2.3 billion, up sharply from the original estimates. The work should last until 2027-2028.
It should be noted that the current Île-aux-Tourtes bridge still needs repairs and that the government will pay between $10 million and $25 million for this work. When it was closed in 2021, the bridge also required urgent repair work.
The last project to be funded to the tune of more than $50 million for 2023-2025 is the repair of the Ville-Marie and Viger tunnels. These tunnels, which allow highways to pass through the city center, must be repaired, modernized and improved at a total cost of $2 billion. Work, underway since 2020, will run until 2030.
A controversial project
Road transport projects in Montreal include the potential extension of boulevard de l’Assomption and avenue de Souligny, which aims to facilitate truck access to the Port of Montreal from the A-25. This project, which would require the razing of green spaces and part of a wooded area in Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, is meeting with strong local opposition.
However, this project is the only one among those funded by the government that is only at the preparation stage. No work has been planned, and no clear sum has been allocated.
Other routes affected
The Pie-IX bridge is also part of the links between Montreal and its greater region that are being repaired. The funding required in 2023-2025 is between $25M and $50M. Its total cost is also much lower than that of other major projects: it amounts to just under $200 million. This project includes a public transit component, with the extension of the rapid bus service on Pie-IX Boulevard towards Laval.
Another significant expense: the concrete roadway on Autoroute 40 will be rebuilt between Saint-Charles and Morgan boulevards, eastbound. This work is part of the major repair of the A-40, in the West Island, requested by the government. The expenditure for the repair of this portion of the highway is between $25 M and $50 M for 2023-2025. The total cost of the project is not known.
In addition, 22 other projects of lesser importance are included in the $1.3 billion envelope, including the repair of the Liesse tunnel on Highway 13, the repair of the elevated structures of the route 136 between the Ville-Marie tunnel and the Turcot interchange, the maintenance of bridges in the city, the repair of the Dorval interchange, the reconstruction of several overpasses and the repair of the Honoré-Mercier bridge.
