Major roadwork is on the way

Turcot Interchange a hub of activity

Between the Turcot Interchange and the South Shore bridges, Montrealers should steel themselves for a lot of road construction this spring, summer and fall. Significant work won’t start until April, but there will be night lane closings on the Jacques Cartier and Champlain bridges.

Enjoy the open road while you can.

No major roadwork is planned around Montreal this weekend, but crews are gearing up for a lot of construction in coming months, especially on and around the Turcot Interchange.

Some of the Turcot work involves repairing existing structures, with the rest related to the $3-billion plan to replace the interchange.

Here’s a look at long-term roadwork that will have a significant impact on traffic this spring, summer and fall, according to Transport Quebec:

In April, two busy Turcot ramps will be closed for extended periods for repairs. One takes cars f rom the Décarie Expressway southbound to Highway 20 west- bound. The other links Highway 20 eastbound to Highway 15 southbound (toward the Champlain Bridge).

In April, Transport Quebec expects to reopen the one lane (out of four) that has been closed since Jan. 15 on the Ville Marie Expressway eastbound, between the Turcot and Atwater Ave.

This summer, workers will begin to completely reconfigure St. Jacques, St. Rémi and Pullman Sts.

This is being done to pre- pare for the new configuration of the Turcot, and to improve access to the McGill University Health Centre superhospital, set to open in 2015.

As part of this work, the Ville Marie Expressway’s westbound St. Jacques St. exit — which only reopened in August after being closed for seven months — will be closed this summer. It will not reopen until the winter of 2015.

Between the fall of 2013 and the winter of 2015, St. Jacques St. will be closed between Addington St. and Décarie Blvd. so the section over the Décarie Expressway can be rebuilt to accommodate the new Turcot design.

As Transport Quebec demolishes that St. Jacques overpass, there will be occasional lane closings on the Décarie Expressway and the Ville Marie Expressway.

As part of this work, the St. Jacques on-ramp to the eastbound Ville Marie Expressway will closed permanently.

That ramp must be eliminated because the structure it is part of is being replaced. A new on-ramp will be built, but drivers will have to drive further to reach it — and it will only open when the Turcot is complete, around 2017.

At some point in 2013, two key Turcot ramps will be closed for extended periods for repairs. Both are from Highway 15 northbound (from the Champlain Bridge). One takes cars to Highway 20 westbound, the other to the Ville Marie eastbound.

Repairs are also being planned on Montreal-South Shore bridges. This winter, there will be night lane closings on the Jacques Cartier and Champlain bridges. Major work that will cause traffic headaches is only expected to begin in the spring, says the federal agency that operates the bridges. Details have not been worked out yet.

On the Mercier Bridge, expect closings this year due to work related to the installation of a new concrete deck on the federal side, though a timeline has not been established yet.

Transport Quebec was unable to provide an update on planned work on the Mercier’s provincial side.