Photo: Martin C. Barry
While the next election comes around in 2012, Premier Jean Charest says
he’ll be around to cut the ribbon in 2015 for the new A-19 extension

An unfinished stretch of Autoroute 19 between autoroutes 440 and 640 will be completed by the provincial government by autumn 2015 at a cost of up to $320 million, Premier Jean Charest announced in Laval on June 21.
Autoroute 19, also known as Autoroute Papineau, goes from Montreal across the Rivière des Prairies by the Papineau-Leblanc Bridge, but currently ends in Laval just north of A-440. There, A-19 becomes Rue Papineau, even though the road has long been designated as the A-19 right-of-way.

Route 335 improvement
While Papineau up to A-640 is currently a super two-lane highway, plans call for the Autoroute 19 extension to have four new interchanges, three lanes in each direction (one reserved for public transit), as well as designated parking areas for carpooling and regional public transit users. North of the A-640, a stretch of Route 335 less than a kilometre long will be widened to two lanes in each direction.
In addition to this project, which is expected to help reduce traffic in eastern Laval as well as on the North Shore, work continues on a new bridge to link Montreal and Laval via Autoroute 25. “As you probably all know, this is a project that is very important for all those who drive on the North Shore,” Charest told a press conference held on Dagenais Boulevard near the area where the A-19 currently ends.

No delays: Charest
Charest said the project is slated to be finished on schedule and there should be no delays. While the next provincial election comes around in 2012, he spoke confidently of taking part as Quebec’s premier in the ribbon-cutting for the new A-19 extension in 2015 three years after the election. “I am looking at my PQ colleagues,” Charest said, noting the presence of some North Shore PQ MNAs who turned up for the announcement.
Liberal Transport Minister Julie Boulet said traffic problems in eastern Laval and on the North Shore, both of which are developing areas, have been well-known for years and the A-19 extension should help relieve that. But she added that public transit will play an integral role in the government’s vision of transport for this part of the region. She said the government’s transport plan for the area spans a period of 20 years.

Route 344 widens
It’s notable that Transport Quebec’s plans for the A-19 extension date back to the 1970s. In addition to the A-19 and Route 335 work, Boulet also announced an improvement project on Route 344, which serves communities on a long stretch of the North Shore. About 1.5 kilometres of the highway around Bois des Filions is to be widened over the next two to three years.
Fabre Liberal MNA Michelle Courchesne, who is the minister responsible for the Laval, Lanaudière and Laurentian regions in the Charest cabinet, said she was grateful to the premier for finally taking action to fix a traffic problem which has existed for too many years.

Economic benefits
“Most certainly it is going to facilitate movement by the population who have to get around in order to work,” she said. “But let’s not forget all the business transactions that will be facilitated by the extension of this autoroute. Hence, a direct contribution to the economy of the regions since these highways will terminate at industrial parks, and we know that in the lower Laurentians industrial parks are now in full expansion.”
Rosemère mayor Hélène Daneault, who was present for the announcement, said the A-19 extension will lessen road traffic problems in her community, while also laying the groundwork for quicker and easier access to the Metro in Laval. She expected the average travel time of Rosemere residents commuting back and forth from Montreal to be reduced during peak periods.