A series of measures to encourage users of the Île-aux-Tourtes bridge to opt for public transportation were announced Friday in the hope of alleviating the hellish traffic created by the recent removal of several lanes on the bridge. infrastructure at the end of its life.
Among these measures put in place by the Ministry of Transport, school buses, those of exo and the STM, will be authorized to travel on the shoulder of Highway 40 heading west as they approach the bridge.
“Thus, public transport users will be able to bypass the congestion zones caused by the new configuration of the lanes at the Île-aux-Tourtes bridge,” specifies the ministry in a press release.
ILLUSTRATION PROVIDED BY THE MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT
As of today, the use of the shoulder by buses will be possible on Highway 40, westbound (towards Vaudreuil-Dorion), between rue Frédéric-Back and boulevard des Anciens-Combattants.
Starting next Monday, exo bus lines 7, 10, 35 and 91 will now be free until the third lane on the bridge opens, which could take a month and a half or even two months. However, users will need to acquire a valid ticket if they wish to obtain a connection with another public transport service.
In addition, starting Monday, public transit tickets will be given free of charge at the Hudson, Vaudreuil, Dorion, Pincourt and Île-Perrot stations on train line 11 Vaudreuil-Hudson. “Users traveling in the direction of Montreal will receive a free two-pass “All Modes ABC” transport ticket in order to travel there and back by train, including connections with the bus, metro and of the REM,” specifies the ministry.
The titles will be distributed from Monday to Friday, between 5:30 a.m. and 8 p.m., depending on the train schedule, and distributions suspended on weekends as well as between Friday December 22, 2023 at 8 p.m. and Monday January 8, 2024 at 5:30 a.m. Free delivery will be maintained when there is no distribution, adds the ministry.
Two lanes of the Île-aux-Tourtes bridge were recently closed in quick succession due to damage to part of the slab and the discovery of new cracks, which represents a real headache for traffic on this key highway bridge, one of the only links connecting the island of Montreal to the west.