The Quebec government has announced plans to invest up to $1.5 billion to replace Montreal’s 40-year old elevated Turcot Interchange with a new ground-level expressway system that will greatly enhance traffic flow, create roughly 100 ha commercial and residential land for development and beautify what is generally considered the most important gateway to the city. Linking Highways 15, 20 and 720, it forms the main transportation hub for both Montreal and the rest of the province.

The crumbling 12.7 km long Turcot Interchange, dubbed spaghetti junction by locals, consists of 28 concrete overpasses and ramps that carry 280,000 vehicles a day at heights reaching 20-30 m. Commissioned just weeks before the opening ceremonies for Expo 67 at a cost of $24 million, the Turcot complex is a sprawling 167 520 m2 oblong-shaped area located approximately 6 km west of downtown Montreal. Bordered by the St. Jacques escarpment to the north, rue Notre Dame to the south and the westerly tip of St-Henri to the east, it takes its name from the now-abandoned Turcot rail yards it is built over.

The Quebec transport ministry says it is taking the decision now to rebuild the entire interchange as it is nearing the end of its design life and that repair and maintenance costs to extend its usefulness would be more expensive than replacing it.

According to the transport ministry, the new interchange will be built alongside the existing one. Construction on the new interchange is due to begin in 2009 with demolition of the old one scheduled to start in 2013. Baring any unforeseen problems, the new interchange should be in service by 2015.

A number of financing and construction options are currently being studied for building the new interchange including a private-public partnership (P3) as well as conventional management. In either case, Transports Quebec says it will follow a public bidding process.