Quebec Autoroute 73

Autoroute 73 shield

Autoroute 73
Autoroute Robert-Cliche
Autoroute Laurentienne
Autoroute Henri-IV
Route information
Maintained by Transports Québec
Length: 135.0 km[1][2] (83.9 mi)
Existed: 1963[2] – present
Major junctions
South end: Saint-Georges, Quebec
 

A-20 (TCH) / Route 132 in Lévis (Saint-Nicolas)
Route 138 / A-40 / A-440 / A-540 in Quebec City (Sainte-Foy)
A-573 in L'Ancienne-Lorette

A-740 / Route 175 in Quebec City (Charlesbourg)
North end: Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury, Quebec
Location
Major cities: Lévis, Quebec City, Saint-Georges, Sainte-Marie
Highway system

Quebec provincial highways

A-70A-85

Autoroute 73 (or A-73) is a Autoroute in Quebec, Canada. Following a northwest-southeast axis perpendicular to the Saint Lawrence River, the A-73 provides an important freeway link with regions north and south of Quebec City, the capital of the province. It also intersects with Autoroute 20 (south of the river) and Autoroute 40 (north of the river) - one of only three Quebec autoroutes to do so. The A-73 begins less than 40 kilometers from the U.S. border in Quebec's Beauce region, traverses metropolitan Quebec City, and ends in the Laurentian Mountains. Civic, political, and business leaders in regions north and south of the A-73's termini have lobbied the Quebec government to extend the autoroute. While the four-laning of Route 175 to Saguenay has alleviated concerns in the north about safety and connectivity, Quebecers in the Beauce continue to advocate for extending the A-73 to the U.S. border.

Autoroute 73 northbound over Pierre Laporte Bridge
left Autoroute 73

Description

Autoroute Robert-Cliche

The southernmost section of the A-73 is named in honour of Robert Cliche. A lawyer, politician, and judge from Quebec's Beauce region, Cliche also served as head of the Quebec branch of the New Democratic Party.

The A-73 begins at a roundabout junction with Route 204 in Saint-Georges, tracing the course of the Chaudière River to its junction with Autoroute 20 in Saint-Romauld. Along the way, the A-73 connects the largest cities and towns in Quebec's historic Beauce region. Exit numbers on the A-73 begin at km 43 (which accounts for an as-yet unbuilt section to the Maine border). Initially, much of the A-73 south of the Saint Lawrence River was built as a super-two (one lane in each direction) highway with no median. Work to expand the autoroute to four lanes is due to be complete in 2016. Motorists wishing to continue southward to Maine must travel Route 173, a two-lane highway.

Approaching metropolitan Quebec City, the A-73 meets the A-20 (co-signed as a section of the Trans-Canada Highway) at an interchange just south of the Saint Lawrence River. From here, motorists can take the A-20 east to Rivière-du-Loup, Rimouski, and the Gaspé Peninsula; and west to Montreal, Toronto, and Ottawa (via the A-40 and Ontario Highway 417).

The A-73 crosses the Saint Lawrence via the Pierre Laporte Bridge—the longest suspension bridge in Canada.

Autoroute Henri-IV

North of the river, the A-73 is named for Henri IV (Henri-Quatre), King of France at the time of the city of Québec's founding in 1608.

The A-73 provides a partial beltway around metropolitan Quebec to the west and north of the central city. At kilometer 134, the A-73 intersects with the A-540, a spur route connecting the A-73 and A-40 with the approach to Jean-Lesage International Airport.

At kilometer 139, the A-73 meets the A-40 and A-440. From here, motorists can take the A-40 west to Trois-Rivières and Montreal, or the A-440 east to Quebec City centre. North of this interchange, A-73 is signed as a concurrency with the A-40 for 10 km (6.2 mi).

Autoroute Félix Leclerc

Once co-signed with the A-40, the A-73 assumes the name assigned to the A-40. Leclerc was a singer-songwriter, poet, writer, actor and political activist.

The A-73/40 continues north for three kilometers to a junction with Autoroute 573, a spur route that provides access to the CFB Valcartier military base. At this intersection, the A-73/40 exit the autoroute, which continues as the A-573. From here, the A-73/40 continues due east, bypassing Quebec City to the north. Whereas the A-73/40 uses A-73 distance-based exit numbers prior to the junction with the A-573, past this point, A-40 distance based exit numbers are used. (This anomaly reflects an unbuilt section of the A-40, which would have started at Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, bypassed Jean-Lesage AIrport to the north, and connected with the present-day A-73/40 at the A-573 interchange.)

The A-73/40 intersects with the A-740 (a spur route connecting Sainte-Foy with the northern suburbs) at exit 310.

At exit 313, A-73 exits the autoroute at a cloverleaf interchange. North of the junction, the A-73 continues through Quebec City's northern suburbs. South of the junction, the autoroute is signed as Autoroute 973. The A-973 is a spur route which terminates just north of Quebec City centre. The A-40 continues eastward for another ten kilometers to a terminus with the A-440 just east of the city centre.

Autoroute Laurentienne

The most northerly section of the A-73 is named for the Laurentian Mountains, a popular destination for outdoor sports north of Quebec City..

After the split with the A-40, the A-73 enters the foothills of the Laurentians. The autoroute provides access to the Stoneham Mountain Resort at kilometer 167 and bypasses Stoneham and Tewkesbury to the east. This stretch is cosigned with Route 175. The A-73 ends at kilometer 182, with a final exit at Boulevard Talbot in Stoneham. The road continues as Route 175, which provides a link between Quebec City and the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region to the north.

Future

Chaudière-Appalaches

Community leaders continue to press for Transports Québec to extend the A-73 south to the Maine border.[3] The issue resurfaced during the 2015 elections, when Coalition Avenir Québec leader François Legault announced his support for extending the A-73 to Maine as a priority for his party if elected.[4] For its part, Maine continues to debate private financing, construction, and operation of a proposed East-West Highway linking Quebec with the Maritime Provinces. The proposed route, however, would involve connecting with an extended section of Autoroute 10, not the A-73. Maine currently has no plans to convert U.S. Route 201 to Interstate standards, which would provide an all-freeway connection from Quebec City to Interstate 95.

Capitale-Nationale

Between 2003 and 2013, the governments of Quebec and Canada co-funded reconstruction of Route 175 into a partially-controlled access freeway between the end of A-73 in Stoneham and the junction with the A-70 in Saguenay.[5] This prompted speculation that the A-73 designation would be extended further northward into the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region. As the reconstructed Route 175 is not fully a controlled-access highway, it does not meet Autoroute design standards. Thus, A-73's terminus remains at Stoneham unless and until corresponding sections of Route 175 are upgraded to controlled-access freeway. Quebec Autoroute 70 remains the only autoroute in Quebec that does not directly connect to any other.

Interchanges from South to North

Municipality No. Intersecting Roads Notes
Autoroute Robert-Cliche, south of Quebec City
Saint-Georges 43 Route 204 (127e Rue) opened Nov. 2013
48 74e Rue opened Nov. 2013
Notre-Dame-des-Pins 53 20e Rue opened Nov. 2015
Beauceville 61 Route du Golf
Saint-Joseph-de-Beauce 72 Route 276 (Route Lac-Vachon)
Saints-Anges - Vallée-Jonction Boundary 81 Route 112 (Route Érables)
Sainte-Marie 92 Route Carter
95 Route Cameron
Scott 101 Route 173 (Route Président-Kennedy)
Saint-Isidore 108 Route Vieux-Moulin
Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon 115 Route 218 (Rue du Pont)
Lévis 123 Route 175 (Avenue St-Augustin)
124 Chemin St-Gregoire
128 Route Beaulieu
130 Avenue Joseph-Hudon
131 A-20 (TCH)
Pierre Laporte Bridge
Quebec City 132 Route 136 (Boulevard Champlain, Avenue des Hôtels)
133 Chemin St-Louis (northbound only)
134 A-540 (Autoroute Duplessis) / Route 175 (Boulevard Laurier) Jean Lesage International Airport
136 Boulevard Hochelaga
137 Chemin des Quatre-Bourgeois
138 Chemin Ste-Foy (northbound) / (southbound)
139 A-40 west / A-440 (Autoroute Charest) Ville de Québec
140 Rue John-Molson
141 Route 138 (Boulevard Wilfrid-Hamel)
142 A-573 (Autoroute Henri-IV)
Autoroute Henri-IV, concurrency with Autoroute 40
Quebec City 308 (143*) Route 371 (Boulevard de l'Ormiere)
310 (145*) Boulevard St-Jacques
311 (146*) A-740 (Autoroute du Vallon)
312 (147*) Route 358 (Boulevard Pierre-Bertrand)
Autoroute Laurentienne, north of Quebec City
Quebec City 148 A-40 east / A-973 south / Route 175
149 Boulevard de l'Atrium / Boulevard Lebourgneuf
150 Route 369 (Boulevard Louis-XIV)
151 Boulevard Jean-Talon
154 Rue de la Faune, Wendake
155 Rue Georges-Muir
156 Rue Bernier (northbound only)
157 Boulevard du Lac, Lac-Beauport
158 Rue Jacques-Bédard (northbound only)
159 Boulevard Talbot
Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury 167 Route 371 Stoneham, Tewkesbury, Lac-Delage
169 Chemin des Frères-Wright, Chemin Crawford
174 Chemin Saint-Edmond, Saint-Adolphe
182 Chemin du Parc National continues north as Route 175

References

  1. Ministère des transports, "Distances routières", page (?), Les Publications du Québec, 2005
  2. 1 2 "Répertoire des autoroutes du Québec" (in French). Transports Québec. Retrieved 2008-02-23.
  3. "Le prolongement de l’autoroute 73 vers le Maine doit être une priorité selon Maxime Bernier". EnBeauce.com. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  4. Gignac, Gabriel. "" Le prolongement de l'autoroute 73 jusqu'au Maine est notre priorité " — François Legault". EnBeauce.com. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  5. Mandats

External links

Route map: Bing / Google

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