Quebec to fix Galipeault span

BY MARC LALONDE

marc.lalonde@transcontinental.ca

The provincial government will sink $98 million into reconstructing the eastbound section of the Galipeault Bridge just a few days from now, closing the bridge for an undetermined amount of time, Quebec Transport Minister Julie Boulet announced last week.

The project will widen the bridge, adding one lane of traffic in both directions, and a bicycle path on the south side of the bridge — which links Ste. Anne de Bellevue and Ile Perrot — and improve pedestrian access to the span.

Boulet said bridge traffic, which currently bottlenecks at rush hour, will improve.

“(The bridge) is a major thoroughfare of Highway 20 in the western part of Montreal, with 54,000 vehicles using it every day. Its reconstruction, with the addition of one lane of traffic in both directions will allow traffic circulation in the area to improve quality of life for people in Montreal and Ile Perrot,” Boulet said.

The first phase of the project should begin any day now, a Transport Quebec spokesman said.

“Work could begin right away, with engineers doing the preparatory work and evaluation of the structure, with the engineers working under the bridge,” Mario St. Pierre said, adding TQ expects to start demolition work on the bridge in April 2008, so closure should come shortly before then. The bridge should re-open to traffic by 2010, he added.

“It’s all in the engineers’ plans. That’s up to them. There are really so many factors involved for the engineers to figure out,”

he said.

The Galipeault Bridge was built in two phases. The structure being replaced supporting the eastbound lanes was built in 1964, while the westbound lanes were re-done in 1991.

For Ile Perrot, Notre Dame de l’Ile Perrot and Pincourt residents who work on Montreal Island, the bridge’s impending closure will mean a complete disruption of their daily commute and possibly more. The traffic that normally flows into Montreal via the Galipeault span will probably be redirected up to Highway 40 every morning.

Ste. Anne Mayor Bill Tierney said the reconstruction, while temporarily inconvenient, will eventually benefit off-island residents as well as denizens of Ste. Anne de Bellevue.

“It has to be done, and this is a major project. How often do you see nearly $100 million spent in your backyard? I think the important thing is get the message out to people and keep them informed as to what’s going to be happening and when, so that nobody gets any surprises. I’ve spoken with Ste. Anne merchants, and they’re pretty supportive of this project,”