MONTREAL – Driving on the Decarie Expressway under the Saint-Jacques overpass may not be for the faint of heart.
Exposed, twisted rebar and massive pieces of concrete hang ominously above vehicles, passing just metres below.
Part of the overpass is being torn down to make way for the new Turcot Interchange, which is scheduled to be finished in 2020.
“If you’re driving along and a little piece of debris can fall on you it would be devastating,” Trevor St-Martin-Nicholls, a nearby resident, told Global News.
Two major sections of the overpass were torn down last weekend and more will be dismantled this weekend, but Transports Quebec officials insist driving under what’s left of the structure is safe.
Spokesperson Nomba Danielle told Global News the structure is inspected by engineers with surgical-like precision.
“They go up to the bridge level and they verify each centimetre to make sure that there will be no concrete debris that may fall,” she told Global News.
Nevertheless, not everyone is confident in Transports Quebec’s assurances.