The completion of autoroute 25 between autoroute 440 in Laval and Henri-Bourassa Boulevard in Montréal is part of the MTQ’s strategy to support development of the east end of the agglomeration of Montréal by enhancing the mobility of people and goods between the economic hubs within the metropolitan area. The extension will link Laval and the Laurentides and Lanaudière regions with the eastern section of Montréal and the Montérégie, without involving the use of the autoroute Métropolitaine.

Traffic on the bridges spanning Rivière des Prairies between Montréal and Laval and those between Montréal and the northeast has increased substantially in the past decade, while there has been no significant increase in the capacity of that section of the road network. The level of service on all of those thoroughfares is negatively affected by considerable rush-hour congestion.

In fact, a study of traffic on the bridges between Laval and Montréal, and between the northeast shore and Montréal, found a 140% increase in trips over 32 years: average annual daily traffic (AADT) rose from 270,610 vehicles in 1971 to 646,900 vehicles in 2003.

Furthermore, growth forecasts for the Greater Montréal area indicate that serious congestion problems can be expected on the autoroute network between Laval and Montréal in the coming years. According to the Institut de la statistique du Québec, the population of the Montréal Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) ¹ will increase by almost 9%, from 3.490 million in 2001 to 3.805 million in 2021. During that same period, the population of the Island of Montréal is expected to rise by 7%, from 1.817 million to more than 1.931 million.

In addition, as illustrated in Figure 1, demographic growth will be especially strong in the areas north of Montréal and Laval that are primarily accessible using autoroute 25, which will have a heavy impact on transportation demand, especially in terms of trips along the north-south.

The main objectives contemplated by the completion of autoroute 25 involve:

• creating a direct physical link in the east end of the metropolis between the northern belt, Laval, Montréal, and the South Shore;
• improving traffic conditions on other major thoroughfares between Montréal and Laval (routes 125, 117, and 335, and autoroutes 19, 15, and 13) as well as toward the northeast (route 138 and autoroute 40);
• reducing traffic on local arteries;
• building a bypass road for the transport of goods;
• improving public transit service conditions between Montréal and the North Shore;
• reducing traffic along autoroute 40 between autoroute 25 and autoroute 15;
• increasing the sense of comfort and safety for road users;
• supporting the development of the agglomeration’s economic hubs and the economic growth of the eastern sections of Montréal and Laval.

In order to meet the recognized needs, the MTQ plans to extend autoroute 25, thereby completing its autoroute network in the northeast section of the Greater Montréal area.
The completion involves building a 7.2-km 4-lane stretch of autoroute between Henri-Bourassa Boulevard in Montréal and autoroute 440 in Laval, including a 1.2-km 6-lane bridge across Rivière des Prairies.
The project also involves the construction of lanes intended to integrate the new stretch into the existing network in Montréal and Laval, as well as the required overpasses and interchanges. A reserved bus lane will also be constructed as part of the project, except on the bridge, where buses will merge with the rest of the traffic.
The objective of the completion of autoroute 25 is to provide road users with a four-lane autoroute link between the cities of Montréal and Laval. Drivers will gain time compared to the other links between Montréal and Laval. The project will also enable the commuter, transit, and truck traffic that makes abundant use of local Montréal streets and boulevards to take autoroute 25 to reach the northeast section of the metropolitan area. As a result, drivers who wish to avoid the autoroute Métropolitaine will be able to bypass the centre of the agglomeration by using a toll-road to the north.

The favoured approach for carrying out this autoroute project is that of a public-private partnership (PPP). This approach involves assigning the design, construction, operation, maintenance, and financing of the autoroute stretch to the private sector. The term of the contract is expected to be approximately 35 years.
At the same time, the Government intends to complete part of the missing link between Montréal and Laval using the conventional approach. Here is a synopsis of the main physical features that must be built by the private partner according to the PPP arrangement, and by the Government using the conventional approach:

Work done by MTQ using the conventional approach :

• Canadian National railway overpass in Montréal
• Reserved bus lane in Montréal and Laval
• West-side service road in Montréal
• Local network in Laval

Work by private partner through the PPP :

• Expressways in Montréal and Laval
• Bridge across Rivière des Prairies
  Henri-Bourassa, Maurice-Duplessis, and Perras
• Boulevard overpasses in Montréal
• East-side service road in Montréal
• Toll system

Construction costs for the entire project are estimated at $400 million. This includes all of the work involved in the completion, both for the portion done using the conventional approach and the portion carried out through a PPP.

The plan to extend autoroute 25 was presented to the population of Montréal and Laval through a consultation organized by the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l’environnement. In addition to environmental issues, many other aspects of the project were reviewed, including land development and factors related to economic and social development. The BAPE report will be posted here in December 2005.

The timetable for the PPP portion of the project is as follows:

• Request for Qualification : December 2005
• Request for Proposals : April 2006
• Announcement of the selected partner : Winter 2007
• Construction : 2007-2010
• Opening : 2010

Please note that the MTQ plans to complete the work that will be carried out using the conventional approach before the private partner begins to work on the project.

The private partner will be chosen through a two-stage selection process:

1. The Request for Qualification, at the conclusion of which three candidates will be selected;
2. The Request for Proposals from the qualified candidates, at the conclusion of which the private partner will be invited to enter into a partnership agreement with the Government.

Request for Qualification

The purpose of the Request for Qualification process is to select three candidates who will be invited to continue the selection process. All candidates who respond to the Request for Qualification must demonstrate:

• their technical capacity to design and build the infrastructure;
• their technical capacity to operate and maintain the infrastructure through a PPP, including a toll system;
• their capacity to finance the work and their ability to package the financing.

Request for Proposals

The three companies or consortiums who qualify at the end of the Request for Qualification process will be eligible to submit a detailed proposal for undertaking a portion of the completion of autoroute 25. The proposals must describe the proposed concepts in sufficient detail to allow for an assessment of their merits, their technical feasibility, and the financial impact on the Government. More specifically, the proposals must include both technical specifications and price quotes.

The Request for Proposals process will culminate in the announcement of the selected company or consortium. This process is scheduled to be completed in winter 2007.

In French only :

• Rationalization report - April 2001 (22,3 MB)
• Additional detailed information - December 2004 (22,5 MB)
• Additional detailed information (addendum) - May 2005 (1,53 MB)
• Alignment of the new stretch, Montréal sector (510 KB)
• Alignment of the new stretch, Laval sector (583 KB)

 

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1

Census Metropolitan Area, as defined by Statistics Canada: a very large urban area (known as the urban core), together with the adjacent urban and rural areas that have a high degree of social and economic integration with the urban core.