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Gantry crane construction causes closure of Highway 40 in Quebec

Montreal – The Réseau express métropolitain (REM) project office announced a major undertaking on Highway 40 (A40) West over the coming weeks. The installation of a gantry for the future REM elevated structure will require complete closures of the A40 West near Saint-Jean Boulevard on certain weekends in September and October.

Motorists wishing to travel westbound are advised to avoid the area. As part of this undertaking, the A40 West will be completely closed on the following weekends:

• Friday, September 18 from 10:00 p.m. to Monday, September 21 at 5:00 a.m.
• Friday, September 25 from 10:00 p.m. to Monday, September 28 at 5:00 a.m.
• Friday, October 16 from 10:00 p.m. to Monday, October 19 at 5:00 a.m.
• Saturday, October 24 from 5:00 a.m. to Sunday, October 25 at 10 p.m.

Scheduled lane closures and work dates may vary depending on the weather and how the work progresses.

On these weekends, although a detour will be possible via the A40 West service road, we recommend that users avoid the area and take Highway 20 instead.

Consult the map showing the area concerned and the detour to be taken during closure.

A gantry, a portion of the elevated structure supported by two pillars, will be installed to help support loads while leaving a clear space for vehicle traffic. The gantry will be installed on either side of Highway 40 West to continue construction of the elevated structure. This structure is to be installed using a launch beam in 2021.

During the first closure, the work will consist of lifting the gantry. Phase 2 will continue the following weekend and will entail concreting of the structure. In Phase 3, the gantry will be dismantled. An extra weekend has also been planned in case any finishing work is required after the gantry has been dismantled.

Full details concerning obstructions and detours are available here: rem.info/en/A40

Work is progressing on the West Island

As an integral element of the future REM elevated structure on the West Island, this gantry is part of the considerable progress that has been made in this area in recent months. Since June, the launch beams dubbed Anne and Marie have resumed their great adventure on the West Island. Anne is currently located near de Berne Street in Kirkland, while Marie is close to Des Sources Boulevard. Marie will help install the segments above this portion of Highway 40 in 2021.

To date, nearly six kilometres of the 14.5-kilometre West Island elevated structure have already been built. This means that approximately 1,770 of the 4,102 segments that will make up the structure have already been installed. It will be recalled that these are prefabricated at a Quebec plant located in St-Eugène-de-Grantham. In addition, of the 367 pillars to be built in this sector, the teams have already managed to complete more than 260. In closing, two stations on the Saint‑Anne-de-Bellevue branch are already under construction: Fairview–Pointe-Claire and Anse‑à-l’Orme.

About the REM

The Réseau express métropolitain (REM) is a new, 67-kilometre integrated public transit network that will feature 26 stations and link downtown Montréal, the South Shore, the West Island, the North Shore and Montréal-Trudeau airport through a fully automated electric light rail system. Offering high‑frequency service, the REM will operate 7 days per week, 20 hours per day, and will be connected to the three main lines of the Montréal metro.