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Autoroute (Quebec)Autoroute is a French word meaning, literally, a motor road, and corresponding to the words "motorway" or "freeway" in English. It is the name used in the francophone world for highways constructed exclusively for motor traffic. Overview: Autoroutes of Quebec The Autoroute system in the province of Quebec, Canada, is a network of freeways which operate under the same principle of controlled-access as the Interstate freeway system in the United States or the 400-Series Highways in neighbouring Ontario. The Autoroutes are the backbone of Quebec's highway system, which spans more than 20,000 km of roads. The speed limit on Quebec's Autoroutes is 100 km/h in rural areas and 70 km/h in urban areas. Numbering system Autoroutes are identified by blue and red shields, with the red header image representing a highway overpass. Quebec's Autoroutes are numbered from 1-99 in the case of principal routes, and from 400-999 in the case of collector routes or deviation routes designed such that truck traffic can by-pass urban areas. In the case of deviation routes, the hundreds prefix is even-numbered (e.g., 400, 600), whereas collector routes have odd-numbered prefixes (e.g., 500, 700, 900). For example, A-40 is an Autoroute, the A-640 is a deviation route, and the A-740 is a collector route linking the A-40 to other Autoroutes. Odd-numbered Autoroutes (e.g., A-15) generally run perpendicular to the Saint Lawrence River, while the even-numbered ones (e.g., A-20, A-40) generally run parallel to it. In addition, each Autoroute has a unique name in addition to its numerical designation and it is commonplace for Autoroutes to be identified using either method (e.g., the Dcarie, the 15). History of Quebec's Autoroutes
Examples of Autoroute marker shields. Quebec's first Autoroute was the Laurentian Autoroute (Autoroute des Laurentides), which opened in 1959 as a toll road. This initative to bring freeways into Quebec was started by Maurice Duplessis, whose government saw the construction of the Laurentian Autoroute (A-15) from Montral to Saint-Jrme and the first section of the Boulevard Mtropolitain (A-40), which opened in 1960. It was the Quebec Liberal government of the 1960s that saw the construction of further Autoroutes, especially in light of the fact that many visitors would be flocking to Montral by car for Expo 67. The Dcarie (A-15) and the Lafontaine Tunnel were constructed for that very reason. The Eastern Townships Autoroute (A-10, Autoroute des Cantons-de-l'Est) opened in 1964, while the A-55 between Magog and Rock Island opened in 1967. A-40 was extended out to Berthierville, and later to Trois-Rivires in the 1970s. The 1970s also saw the completion of the Pierre-Laporte Bridge in Qubec City, connecting the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River to the north. In addition to this, the A-73 was extended to Beauce, the A-20 was extended to Rivire-du-Loup, and the Chomedey Autoroute (A-13) and the A-440 were constructed in Laval. During the 1970s, the Parti Qubcois came to power, whose platform mandated an expansion of public transportation over the construction of more Autoroutes. Existing Autoroutes were extended (e.g., the A-40 was extended from Trois-Rivires to Quebec City) but no new Autoroutes were built. Nearly all of Quebec's Autoroutes were toll roads until the mid-1980s, when the toll barriers were removed and the province stopped collecting tolls from vehicles using the Autoroutes. List of Autoroutes in Quebec - Name: Autoroute de la Gatineau
- Description: From the Pont Cartier-MacDonald in Gatineau to chemin de la Rivire in Chelsea
- Length: 21 km
- History: First opened in 1964, from the bridge to Route 105 (Gatineau, Exit 5); last section opened in 1991, from chemin Scott to chemin de la Rivire (Chelsea, Exits 13 to 21)
- Notes: An isolated divided four-lane section of Route 366 exists in La Pêche, which is planned to be connected to the existing A-5 by the end of this decade, extending A-5 to 33 km in length.
- Name: Autoroute Bonaventure
- Description: From the A-720 (Autoroute Ville-Marie) to le des Sœurs in Montral
- Length: 4.1 km
- History: First opened in 1967
- Name: Autoroute des Cantons-de-l'Est
- Description: From the Champlain Bridge to Route 112 in Sherbrooke
- Length: 153.8 km
- History: First section (Montral-Longueuil across the Champlain Bridge) opened in 1962.
- Notes: The easternmost section east of Sherbrooke is a Super-2.
- Name: Autoroute Dcarie
- Description: From the Turcot interchange to the A-40 interchange in Montral
- Length: 7.4 km
- History:
- Name: Autoroute des Laurentides
- Description: From the A-40 interchange to Route 117 in Sainte-Agathe
- Length: 89.4 km
- History: First opened in 1958; the last section was completed in 1974
- Notes: Route 117 continues northward as a four-lane divided expressway. It is possible that A-15 could be extended beyond Mont-Tremblant.
- Name: Autoroute Papineau
- Description: boul. Henri-Bourassa in Montral to boul. Dagenais in Laval
- Length: 10.1 km
- History: First section was opened in 1970 (boul. H-Bourassa to boul. Lvesque), final section was completed twenty years later
- Notes: Most of the section in Montreal is an urban arterial (Avenue Papineau).
- Name: Autoroute Jean-Lesage (known as the Montreal-Toronto Highway throughout the West Island)
- Description: Ontario-Quebec border at Rivire-Beaudette (connects to Highway 401 in Ontario) to rue Pre Nouvel in Rimouski
- Length: 541.7 km (the longest Autoroute in Quebec)
- History: Construction of the A-20 began in 1964. It should be noted that the A-20 is a part of the Trans-Canada Highway, from the A-25 interchange (Louis-Hippolyte Lafontaine Tunnel) up to Route 185 at Riviere-du-Loup
- Notes: Autoroute 20 is comprised of two separate segments. The western segment extends from the Ontario border to Saint-Georges-de-Cacouna, and the eastern segment is a bypass of Rimouski, which was extended in 2003 to Luceville. A section of this highway from Vaudreuil-Dorion eastward to the Galipeault Bridge (approximately 4 miles) is a congested arterial four lane road. It is slowly being upgraded to Autoroute standard.
- Future: There are plans to connect both segments - extending the western segment to Trois-Pistoles and eventually connecting with the Rimouski bypass, and the eastern segment will likely extend from Luceville to Mont-Joli
- Name: Autoroute 25 (or, unofficially, Autoroute de Lanaudire)
- Description: The A-25 is divided into two sections: the first section connects the A-40 to the A-20 (L.-H. Lafontaine Bridge-Tunnel) and the second runs from the A-40 interchange to Route 125 in Saint-Esprit
- Length: 49.9 km
- History: The first section was completed in 1967 and is a part of the Trans-Canada Highway while the second section was completed up to Saint-Esprit in 1999
- Future: There are long-term plans to extend A-25 all the way to Route 347 in Notre-Dame-de-la-Merci which would double its length to 100 km. A section of Route 125 is currently expressway-grade, which would form the northern end of A-25, connected by 30 km of new highway. No timeline is currently set.
- Name: Autoroute de l’Acier
- Description: The A-30 consists of four sections: the first detours Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, the second detours the Kahnawake reserve, the third links Saint-Constant (at the junction of the A-15) to Sorel, and the final section links the A-55 and Bcancour
- Length: 122.7 km
- History:
- Future: Construction will start in 2005 on a plan to link up separate segments of the route. A new alignment bypassing Saint-Constant south of Route 132 will be built, although there will be a two-kilometer overlap with A-15, and this segment will be finished by 2008. By 2009, A-30 will be linked between Chteauguay and Vaudreuil-Dorion. The existing A-30 segment around Salaberry-de-Valleyfield will be renumbered as A-530 and will connect with the new A-30 bridge of the Saint Lawrence River. When finished, A-30 will provide a southern bypass of Montral. There are no plans to connect the third and fourth segments though.
- Name: Autoroute Antonio-Barrette
- Description: A short Autoroute that follows Route 131 between the A-40 and Joliette
- Length: 14.3 km
- History: Completed in 1966
- Name: Autoroute de la Valle-des-Forts
- Description: A short Autoroute that connects Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and Iberville to the A-10; it was originally known as the Autoroute de la Nouvelle-Angleterre. A-35 ends at Route 133, which connects to Interstate 89 in Vermont.
- Length: 19.2 km
- History: Completed in 1967
- Future: A-35 will be extended to finish the freeway link to I-89 via some new alignments and upgrading of certain expressway sections of Route 133. Some have also called for a northern extension to Sorel-Tracy, although there are no immediate plans for that.
- Name: Autoroute Flix-Leclerc (Autoroute Mtropolitaine between A-15 in the east and boul. H.-Bourassa in Montral in the west; Autoroute de la Rive Nord between the Rivire des Prairies and Route 341)
- Description: From the Ontario-Quebec border at Pointe-Fortune to Route 138 in Boischatel
- Length: 347.1 km
- History: The A-40 is a part of the Trans-Canada Highway from the Ontario border to the A-25 interchange. The first section of the Autoroute Mtropolitaine opened in 1960.
- Future: It is envisioned that A-40 will be extended eastward, possibly as far east as Route 360, as recreation in the Charlevoix area increases. There are no immediate plans to extend A-40, however.
- Name: Autoroute Maurice-Richard
- Description: The A-50 is not a complete route; the first segment, in the east, connects the A-15 to Lachute--this section is a simple roadway, with at-grade railway crossings (rare for a freeway). The second segment, in the west, links Hull to Masson.
- Length: 59.2 km
- History: The western section of this Autoroute was originally named the Autoroute de l’Outaouais, as it follows the path of the Rivire des Outaouais on the Quebec side.
- Future: Construction on an extension from Masson to Thurso will be complete by 2005, and by 2007, the western segment likely will extend from Thurso to Fassett. Ultimately, in the longer term, A-50 is envisioned to be completed between Fassett and Lachute, closing the gap in the freeway. Slight westward extensions are also possible, however it is unlikely to extend beyond Aylmer, and should it do so, it would most likely be a Super-2.
- Name: Autoroute Joseph-Armand Bombardier or Autoroute Transqubcoise
- Name: Autoroute 70 (or, unofficially, Autoroute du Saguenay)
- Description: From Chicoutimi to Jonquiere
- Length: 17 km
- History: Completed up to Jonquiere in 2002
- Future: Autoroute 70 will be extended from Jonquiere to Alma, and eastward from Chicoutimi to La Baie
- Name: Autoroute Robert-Cliche
- Name: Autoroute Henri-IV, Autoroute Laurentienne
- Description: A short trunk route linking Qubec City to Stoneham, just north of Qubec City
- Length: 27 km
- History:
- Future: Long extensions are underway, which will extend A-73 farther north through the Laurentians and up to the Saguenay region along the Route 175 corridor.
- Name: Autoroute 85 (or, unofficially, Autoroute du Temiscouata)
- Description: From Riviere-du-Loup to the New Brunswick border south of Degelis
- Length: about 98 km
- History: Currently Route 185 and part of the Trans-Canada Highway. A short freeway section exists on the northern end.
- Future: It is proposed that Route 185 will be upgraded to an Autoroute for the entire length, for a continuous freeway along the Trans-Canada Highway across Quebec. Once completed, it should be designated A-85.
- Name: Autoroute 410 (or, unofficially, Autoroute de l'Universit)
- Description: Short spur from the A-10 to the Universit de Sherbrooke
- Length: 5.3 km
- History: Completed in 1978
- Future: Autoroute 410 is planned to connect with Route 108 just east of Lennoxville, allowing truck traffic to completely bypass the congested town. It will pass south of the town, before connecting near the experimental farm to the east.
- Name: Autoroute Laval
- Description: From the A-13 west of Laval to the A-25 on the east side of Laval.
- Length: 13.2 km
- History: Construction on this section of the A-440 was completed in 1979
- Name: Autoroute Charest, Autoroute Dufferin-Montmorency
- Description: Short spur routes in Qubec City
- Length: 12.5 km
- History:
- Name: Autoroute Cte de Liesse
- Name: Autoroute 540 (or, unofficially, Autoroute Vaudreuil)
- Description: Connects the A-40 and A-20 in Vaudreuil
- Length: 4.9 km
- History: Completed in 1967
- Name: Autoroute Duplessis
- Description: Runs from the Pierre-Laporte Bridge to Route 138 in Sainte-Foy
- Length: 5.1 km
- History: Completed in 1966
- Name: Autoroute Henri-IV
- Description: This is an extension of A-73, which runs from the A-73/A-40 interchange to Route 369 in Qubec City
- Length: 7.8 km
- History: Completed up to Route 369 in 1998
- Name: Autoroute 640 (or, unofficially, Autoroute de contournement nord de Montral)
- Name: Autoroute Ville-Marie
- Description: This Autoroute passes under downtown Montral through the Ville-Marie tunnel, but the length of the route runs from the Turcot interchange up to the Jacques-Cartier Bridge
- Length: 8.5 km
- History:
- Name: Autoroute du Vallon
- Description: From boul. Laurier (Sainte-Foy) to the A-40 interchange in Quebec City.
- Length: 7.4 km
- History:
- Name: Autoroute 955 (or, unofficially, Autoroute de Saint-Albert)
- Description: From Saint-Albert to the A-20 interchange in Sainte-Eulalie
- Length: 14.7 km
- History: This short section of Autoroute was destined to become part of a much longer section of freeway, as the A-55 was supposed to follow this route as opposed to its current alignment through Drummondville; however, this was never realised, but the short route still remains.
See also External links
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