Hwy. 40 section to be paved in concrete
Q In a followup to another reader question about Highway 40 eastbound from the Île-auxTourtes Bridge to St-Charles Blvd., I’m completely baffled as to why they didn’t finish the section in concrete like they did on the other side of Highway 40 westbound. It seems roadwork done in Quebec is always piecemeal. Is there a plan to finish this all in concrete so it will last? Even on the westbound side, they stopped using concrete about a kilometre short of the bridge. What are they thinking? Craig Ferguson, St-Lazare
A In fact, the province plans to repave the section of Highway 40 between St-Charles and Anciens-Combattants Blvds. in concrete, said Transport Quebec spokesperson Martin Girard.
Most highways in the province have a road surface made of asphalt, which is a flexible, petroleum-based material. Concrete, a substance made of cement, aggregate, water and sand, is more expensive and takes longer to lay, but advocates say the surface lasts longer and is less prone to potholes.
The highway west of Cavendish Blvd. was originally built in the 1960s and is coming to the end of its useful life, Girard said. It was redone over several years starting in 2004. The westbound side was completed in 2014, while the eastbound side was completed up to St-Charles Blvd. The remaining portion of the highway will be redone in 2018 or 2019, Girard said, and it will be paved in concrete. It’s too soon to say when the work will be completed and how long it will take.
Another project is due to begin in 2019 on westbound Highway 40 from the Île-aux-Tourtes Bridge to Highway 30. The surface will also be concrete.
Transport Quebec expects the concrete surface will last between 40 and 50 years. The transport department’s asphalt roads generally don’t last that long.
Q Will the city ever repave Côte-Ste-Catherine St., between Cote-des-Neiges Rd. and Victoria Ave? Since it was ripped up last year, the street is at least four to six inches lower than what appears to be normal. The sidewalks are too high and the roads are too low, and the road is not smooth. Stephen Rapps, Town of Mount Royal
A City crews redid that section of Côte-Ste-Catherine last year, but did not complete the work, said Jacques-Alain Lavallée, a spokesperson for the city of Montreal. He said the project will restart in the coming days, and the final coat of asphalt should be laid by the end of this week.
Q I was recently on the website of the Agence métropolitaine de transport and noticed the suburban train authority now has a new name? Is this only a bureaucratic switch, or will it affect the service of the trains? A reader
A The agency was renamed on June 1 as the governance of all transit in the Montreal region underwent a major shakeup. The AMT is now called the Réseau de transport métropolitain. The new agency takes care of operating commuter train lines in the Montreal region, and it also takes over the operation duties of the different suburban bus agencies. The change reduces the number of transit agencies in the region from 16 to five.
All transit agencies, including the Société de transport de Montréal, now answer to the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain, an overarching organization that governs transit planning in the region. The Quebec government created both the RTM and the ARTM to streamline transit service, with one body in charge of all transit planning for the region, something that didn’t really exist before.
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