Montreal to have new bypass and two major crossings over St. Lawrence Seaway
March 27, 2003
By
Canadian Consulting Engineer
The Canadian and Quebec governments are moving fast to begin construction of Highway 30, a major new bypass around...
The Canadian and Quebec governments are moving fast to begin construction of Highway 30, a major new bypass around the south of Montreal.
Transport Minister David Collenette called the 40+ kilometre project “one of the most important transportation priorities in Canada.” He announced on March 6 that the project would proceed. Also present at the announcement were federal Industry Minister, Allan Rock, Quebec Minister of Transport, Serge Menard, and Quebec Deputy Premier, Pauline Marois.
The new highway will be built in two segments and involves two major crossings over the St. Lawrence River and St. Lawrence Seaway as well as 20 other bridges and viaducts. The crossings over the St. Lawrence will require the Canadian Parliament to pass laws approving their construction.
The government of Quebec will fund the first portion of the new highway, which is an eight-kilometre stretch through urban development from Candiac south of the St. Lawrence to Sainte-Catherine Street in urban Montreal. The new highway will be raised above the existing Highway 132 and includes bridges over the Saint-Pierre and Saint-Regis rivers and other viaducts. Work is due to start this summer.
The second, longer segment is a 35-kilometre stretch between Chateauguay in the east to Vaudreuil-Dorion on the west. It will connect to the industrial park and port of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield. Canada and Quebec will share the costs, and they are planning to use a public-private partnership. Federal funding will be from the Canada Strategic Infrastructure Fund.
Over the coming months the government will be starting to award contracts for the segment, at the same time as preparatory work is being carried out. The Federal Bridge Corporation will be asked to help define the parameters for designing the bridges across the St. Lawrence. The Government of Quebec will be project manager for all the work. There is no indication yet of project costs.
The highway will provide a continous bypass highway route south of Montreal, from the intersection with Highway 20 at Sainte-Julie as far as the junctions of Highways 20 and 540 at Vaudreuil-Dorien. The governments hope the road will ease access to Ontario, the U.S. and the Maritimes, and reduce congestion on the Island of Montreal.
