Quebec Autoroute 20

Infobox road
province=QC
type=Autoroute
route=20
alternate_name=Autoroute Jean-Lesage, Autoroute du Souvenir
length_km=517
length_ref=Fact|date=September 2007
length_round=0
length_notes=(main section; Rimouski section is 31 km (19 mi))
established=1964Fact|date=September 2007
direction_a=West
direction_b=East
terminus_a=jct|state=ON|Hwy|401 towards Cornwall, ON
junction=jct|state=QC|A|540| in Vaudreuil-Dorion
jct|state=QC|A|10|A|13|A|15|A|520 &
jct|state=QC|Route|132 near Rivière-du-Loup----jct|state=QC|Route|132 near Rimouski
terminus_b=jct|state=QC|Route|298 near Mont-Joli
previous_type=A
previous_route=19
next_type=A
next_route=25
cities= Vaudreuil-Dorion, Montreal, Brossard, Longueuil, Boucherville, Sainte-Julie, Beloeil, Saint-Hyacinthe, Drummondville, Lévis, Montmagny, Rivière-du-Loup, Rimouski

Autoroute 20 (also called Autoroute Jean-Lesage, Autoroute du Souvenir or the Two and Twenty ) is an important Autoroute in Quebec, Canada. It is one of the two main freeway connections between Montreal and Quebec City (the other being Autoroute 40), and provides important connections to the west and east of the two main cities as well. A-20 is currently 548 km (340 miles) long, making it the longest Autoroute in Quebec.

There are actually two distinct sections of A-20, separated by a gap of 82 km (51 mi), expected to be connected by 2015.

The first (main) section begins at the Ontario-Quebec boundary near Rivière-Beaudette as it is the continuation of Ontario Highway 401 and ends east of Rivière-du-Loup at Route 132. The first section is 517 km (321 miles) long, and is a complete 4 to 6-lane freeway, with two short exceptions:

* An at-grade railroad crossing remains near Saint-Hyacinthe; several others had existed but were abandoned or grade-separated.
* A short section through Vaudreuil-Dorion and L'Île-Perrot remains a congested 4-lane urban arterial road. The maximum speed is 50 km/h (30 mph) in Vaudreuil-Dorion and 70 km/h (45mph) in L'Île-Perrot. It is planned to be upgraded to Autoroute standards, despite the fact that Autoroute 30 will provide a bypass around the Greater Montreal Area by 2009.

The second section currently begins at Route 132 in Le Bic and ends at Route 298 in Luceville after recent extensions were completed in 2003. In 2006 it is expected that A-20 will be extended further, to Mont-Joli. The original part of the second section was to provide a bypass of Rimouski. This section is currently 31 km (19 mi) long; it will be 42 km (26 m) long after the extension to Mont-Joli is completed, and is currently a two-lane freeway for its entire length.

It is expected that the two segments will be joined up by 2015 according to the Bas-Saint-Laurent official plan. Once they are joined up, the length of A-20 will be 641 km (398 miles). It is unclear whether the gap will be filled by a two- or four-lane freeway. No further eastward extensions are currently planned.

Between Route 138 and the Turcot Interchange, the carriageways on Autoroute 20 are reversed, making it one of the only stretches of roadway in Canada where traffic drives on the left side of the road.

Between Autoroute 25 in Longueuil and Autoroute 85 in Rivière-du-Loup, A-20 is part of the Trans-Canada Highway.

Remembrance Highway or Autoroute du Souvenir

In November 2007, Premier Jean Charest announced that the portion of A-20 from the Ontario-Quebec border (west of Rivière-Beaudette, Quebec) to Turcot Interchange (borough "Le Sud-Ouest" in Montreal) will be renamed as the Remembrance Highway or Autoroute du Souvenir in honour of fallen soldiers. This section of highway will connect with another road named for fallen soldiers, the Highway of Heroes in Ontario.

The idea for renaming the section of Autoroute 20 came from World War II navy veteran, Ivan Robertson of New Richmond, Quebec, and a committee from the Quebec Command of the Royal Canadian Legion.

Signage of this stretch will consist of a green sign with a red poppy and the words Autoroute du Souvenir.

Exit list

Rest Stops

The rest stops are located at the following points on Highway 20 and contain the following services * [http://www.findmapping.com/toronto-montreal/highway401.php View Map] :]

Photos

Looking east

Resources

* [http://www.exitlists.com/exitlists/lists/autoroutes/A20.html A-20 at Exitlists.com]
* [http://webfil_92.tripod.com/autoroutes_en/id8.html A-20 at Quebec Autoroutes]
* [http://www.inforoutiere.qc.ca/fr/carte_routiere/index.asp Transports Quebec Map] fr icon
* [http://ca.news.yahoo.com/s/capress/071106/national/que_veterans_highway Veteran from Gaspé behind idea to rename Quebec highway to remember war dead]

ee also

* West of Quebec, A-20 becomes Highway 401
* List of crossings of the Ottawa River
* List of bridges in Montreal