Champlain Bridge replacement starts with Nun’s Island Bypass

MONTREAL — As the sun went up Monday morning, Montreal-bound traffic whizzed by a clean, brand new bridge into Verdun: the Nun’s Island Bypass.

The bypass is the result of a weekend work-blitz that started the long process of completely replacing the Champlain Bridge.

“We had a major work blitz this weekend on the Champlain Bridge, we had to replace some expansion joints on the Champlain Bridge, and at the same time, we connected the Nun’s Island Bypass to the Champlain Bridge,” said Jean-Vincent Lacroix, of Jacques Cartier and Champlain Bridges Incorporated, the crown corporation that manages the two bridges.

The new four-lane-wide bridge heading into Montreal includes a reserve bus lane. Over the years, transit has been an ongoing concern for residents, who sometimes say they feel trapped.

“Construction’s still a problem,” said Lisa Pateras, whose children live on Nun’s Island.

“And I think it will be for quite a while.”

So far as the bypass goes, residents like Carl Fontaine said that the roll-out was well done by the crown corporation responsible. He said traffic went better than expected during the bypass’ first day.

Nonetheless, he noted ongoing construction is still a headache for residents.

“I’ve lived on the island for 30 years, and it’s been a problem, not because of work on the bridge, but because of work that needed to be done on Champlain.”

The new Champlain Bridge is supposed to open as soon as 2018. But ongoing transit woes involving Canada’s busiest bridge were on full display this weekend, when the first of two “work blitzes” shuttered the Montreal-bound lanes of the span, and unrelated work closed the Yellow metro line that connects the South Shore to Montreal.

Lacroix said the crown corporation plans on having the Nun’s Island Bypass fully open and heading in both directions following the second work blitz, scheduled for the weekend of Oct. 17.