Quebec Autoroute 20

Autoroute 20 (also called Autoroute Jean-Lesage) is a very long and important Autoroute in Quebec. It is one of the two main freeway connections between Montreal and Quebec City (the other being Autoroute 40), and provides important connections to the west and east of the two main cities as well. A-20 is currently 548 km (340 miles) long, making it the longest Autoroute in Quebec.

Related Topics:
Autoroute - Quebec - Freeway - Montreal - Quebec City - Autoroute 40

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There are actually two distinct sections of A-20, broken by a gap of 82 km (51 miles) which is intended to be eliminated by 2015.

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The first (main) section begins at the Ontario-Quebec boundary near Riviere-Beaudette as it is the continuation of Highway 401 and ends east of Riviere-du-Loup at Route 132. The first section is 517 km (321 miles) long, and it a complete 4 to 6-lane freeway, with two short exceptions:

Related Topics:
Ontario - Riviere-Beaudette - Highway 401 - Riviere-du-Loup - Route 132

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• An at-grade railroad crossing remains near Saint-Hyacinthe; several others had existed but were abandoned or grade-separated.
• A short section through Dorion and L'Ile-Perrot remains a congested 4-lane urban arterial road with a 50 km/h (30 mph) speed limit; it is slowly being upgraded to Autoroute standards, despite the fact that Autoroute 30 will provide a bypass around the Greater Montreal Area by 2009.

The second section currently begins at Route 132 in Le Bic and ends at Route 298 in Luceville after recent extensions were completed in 2003. In 2006 it is expected that A-20 will be extended further, to Mont-Joli. The original part of the second section was to provide a bypass of Rimouski. This section is currently 31 km (19 miles) long; it will be 42 km (26 miles) long after the extension to Mont-Joli is completed, and is currently a "Super-2" expressway for its entire length.

Related Topics:
Le Bic - Luceville - 2003 - 2006 - Mont-Joli - Rimouski - Super-2 - Expressway

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It is expected that the two segments will be joined up by 2015 according to the Bas-Saint-Laurent official plan. Once they are joined up, the length of A-20 will be 641 km (398 miles). It is unclear whether the gap will be filled by a 4-lane freeway or Super-2 expressway. No further eastward extensions are currently planned.

Related Topics:
2015 - Bas-Saint-Laurent

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Between Autoroute 25 in Longueuil and Route 185 in Riviere-du-Loup, A-20 is part of the Trans-Canada Highway.

Related Topics:
Autoroute 25 - Longueuil - Trans-Canada Highway

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Quebec Autoroute 20: Interchanges from West to East ►