Turcot Interchange And Roadway Reconstruction — Montréal, Canada
Client
- Ministère des Transports du Québec et de la Mobilité durable
Project Value 
$1.8 Billion
Market
Transportation
Services
Alternative Project Delivery
The Turcot Interchange and Roadway Reconstruction is a massive infrastructure redevelopment project that includes the rebuilding of four interchanges. The project includes a total of 28 structures and a new cable-stay bridge crossing the Lachine Canal. It also includes improvement of Autoroutes 15, 20, and 720 and 145 lane km of roadway. Furthermore, the project includes the relocation of the Canadian National (CN) Railway, complex phasing demolition of existing structures, and maintenance of traffic in the heart of Montreal. This area is used by nearly 300,000 vehicles daily. The reconstruction opened up development of nearly 100 hectares (approximately 247 acres) of land. All of this is just a few minutes from downtown Montreal.
The reconstruction project included rebuilding four interchanges, giving preference to elevated roads-on-fill to minimize the number of structures. The four interchanges include a total of 28 structures, which represent 167,520 sq m, the equivalent of more than 23 soccer fields.
Our Role In The Turcot Interchange Project
We were the overall design manager and a 15 percent equity partner in this joint venture contract. We were responsible for design management, roughly 10 percent of the bridge design, 3D modelling, construction erection engineering for the cable-stay bridge, demolition engineering support, and design and construction quality assurance for the project. In addition, we also designed the signature cable-stay bridge over Lachine Canal.
Design services included roadway, drainage, structures, demolition, landscape, lighting, traffic signals, signing, and intelligent transportation systems (ITS).
Project Features
Major project elements included the following:
- Four reconstructed interchanges (Turcot, Angrignon, Montréal-Ouest, and De La Vérendrye)
- 145 km of roadway design and re-construction
- A new cable-stay bridge crossing the Lachine Canal
- Improvements to the Décarie Expressway (Autoroute 15) between the Canadian Pacific/Maisonneuve overpass and the Turcot interchange
- Improvements to Autoroute 720 (renamed to Autoroute 136) between the Turcot interchange and Greene Avenue
- Improvements to Autoroute 20 between the Turcot and Saint-Pierre interchanges
- Connections to the local road network
- Coordination and upkeep of existing structures under the responsibility of KPH during the design and construction period
- Maintenance of traffic in and around these areas under the responsibility of KPH for the entire duration of the project
- Demolition of the infrastructure to be dismantled
Canal Lachine Cable-Stayed Bridge
The Canal Lachine Bridge is the centerpiece of the Turcot Interchange project. We were the lead engineer and engineer-of-record for the five-span, 350m long, 50m wide cable-stayed bridge carrying Autoroute 15 over the Lachine Canal. The structure was built in stages on a curved alignment to accommodate the overall project construction schedule. It also maintained traffic during stages of construction. The design required close collaboration between the designer, contractor, architect, fabricator, and owner.
The 50m wide superstructure carries two independent carriageways with a total of six traffic lanes. The main span uses a pylon and single plane semi-fan arrangement of stays to support the 88m main span over the Lachine Canal. It is the first curved extradosed bridge with a composite superstructure type. This bridge uses multiple coupled steel box girders. The unique design had to accommodate construction of one carriageway to carry traffic for two years without cable supports before the second carriageway could be erected. Both halves were tied together at the lower cable anchorages and the pylon location after establishing composite action. At this stage, they form a unique, highly redundant composite steel grillage system. This achieves both structural efficiency and aesthetic elegance.
Turcot Interchange Project Awards
- 2022 ENR Global Best Project Award from Engineering News-Record (ENR) on 09/19/2022
- 1st place in the Bridge Projects category at the CISC Quebec 22nd Awards for Excellence in Steel Construction, 2022 from Canadian Institute of Steel Construction (CISC-ICCA), Quebec Region on 10/28/2022
- 2020 Prix Infrastructures d’Excellence from Association québécoise des transports (AQTr) on 11/5/2020
