Half of La Fontaine tunnel to close for 3 years starting Oct. 31

Drivers are in for quite a fright this Halloween as Quebec's Transport Ministry announced Thursday that three of the Louis-Hippolyte-La Fontaine tunnel's six lanes will be closed for major repairs from Oct. 31, 2022 until sometime in November 2025.

That means for three years, Montreal-area commuters heading to and from the South Shore will have to make do with just three lanes: two open toward Montreal and only one toward the South Shore.

"We have no choice but to go through with this work," said Quebec Transport Minister François Bonnardel during a news conference.

He said the objective of the project is to ensure the durability of the infrastructure for the next 40 years without any other major interventions.

"We will need everyone's cooperation."

The Transport Ministry is strongly urging the 120,000 average daily users of the 55-year-old tunnel to come up with a Plan B during the course of the repairs.

It said it's aiming to convert around 60 per cent of drivers to public transit in order to lessen congestion in the tunnel for drivers who have no other option. 

Chantal Rouleau — the minister responsible for the metropolis and the Montreal region — said the next few weeks "will not be easy."  

"They will require adaptation and patience for all as the situation evolves," she said. 

Mitigation measures include free transit

The ministry has already started several mitigation measures, including park-and-ride lots in Boucherville, Beloeil and Varennes with buses to bring those drivers to the Radisson Metro station in Montreal's east end.

Those buses will be free for the next three years starting Oct. 17. Also starting then, two free transit passes will be given to users of these shuttles at the Radisson terminus for a period of six weeks so that they can continue their journey by public transit free of charge. 

The Transport Ministry is also promising that Metro service on the yellow line will be improved, as well as the number of bus departures toward the Longueuil terminus.

For drivers who have no other option but to use the tunnel, Transports Quebec says they can expect agonizing commutes. Drivers heading toward the South Shore can expect their travel time to quadruple. Those heading to Montreal can expect it to triple.  

In order to implement the new lane configuration, a work blitz will take place over the coming weeks. 

Between Oct. 21 and 23, the tunnel's northbound tube to Montreal will be closed to cars. The following weekend, between Oct. 28 and 30, the southbound tunnel to the South Shore will be closed.

Drivers can also expect disruptions during the week of Oct. 24, where complete nighttime closures might also be required.

South Shore mayors concerned

Affected municipalities on Montreal's South Shore are preparing for the major traffic disruptions for their residents. 

In Boucherville, which is directly across the St. Lawrence from east end Montreal, the mayor is concerned traffic could pile up on some residential streets in response to the tunnel closures. 

"If the main artery is blocked or jammed, we can expect that some people will decide to use residential streets as a shortcut," said Jean Martel 

Mario Lemay, the mayor of Sainte-Julie, says residents in the municipality — which is about 10 kilometres farther away than Boucherville — are stressed about the expected increase in travel time.

He said he's asked the ministry to increase the number of buses that take commuters directly from Sainte-Julie to downtown Montreal — but even then, there will likely be problems. 

"For a good part of the trip, the bus is stuck in traffic as well," Lemay said. "You have a reserved line from Beloeil to the tunnel, but not through the tunnel."

The mayor worries the lane closures will lead to even more traffic on all bridges linking Montreal to the South Shore, including the Jacques Cartier, Victoria and Champlain bridges.

"We're going to continue to make a lot of advertisements about what [residents] can use in terms of public transit," he said. 

"But unfortunately, for people who can't use [it], they will need a lot of patience."