Autoroutes of Quebec
| Autoroutes of Quebec | |
|---|---|
  
Highway shields for Autoroutes 5, 85 and 410
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The current Autoroute network in Quebec
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| System information | |
| Maintained by Transports Quebec (MTQ) | |
| Length: | 2,298.5 km (1,428.2 mi) |
| Formed: | 1958 |
| System links | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute de la Gatineau | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 34.0 km (21.1 mi) |
| Existed: | 1964 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| North end: |
 Route 105,  Route 366 in Wakefield
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| South end: | King Edward Avenue, Ottawa |
| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Bonaventure, Autoroute des Cantons-de-l'Est | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 145.1 km (90.2 mi) |
| Existed: | 1962 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| West end: |
 A-720 in Montreal
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| East end: |
  A-55 / A-610 in Sherbrooke
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Chomedey | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 21.4 km (13.3 mi) |
| Existed: | 1975 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| South end: |
 A-20 in Lachine
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| North end: |
 A-640 in Boisbriand
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Décarie, Autoroute des Laurentides, Trans-Canada Highway | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 164.0 km (101.9 mi) |
| Existed: | 1958 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| South end: |
 I-87 towards Champlain, New York
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| North end: |
   Route 117 (TCH) / Route 329 in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Papineau | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 10.1 km (6.3 mi) |
| Existed: | 1970 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| South end: |
 A-40 (TCH) in Montreal
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| North end: |
  A-440 / Route 335 in Laval
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Jean-Lesage, Autoroute du Souvenir, Trans-Canada Highway | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 585.0 km (363.5 mi) |
| Existed: | 1964 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| West end: |
 Highway 401 towards Cornwall, ON
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| East end: |
 Route 132 in Mont-Joli
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Louis-H.-La Fontaine, Trans-Canada Highway | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 52.1 km (32.4 mi) |
| Existed: | 1967 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| South end: |
A-20 (TCH) in Longueuil
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| North end: |
  Route 125 / Route 158 in Saint-Esprit
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute de l'Acier | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 161.3 km (100.2 mi) |
| Existed: | 1968 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| West end: |
A-40 (TCH) in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Quebec
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| East end: |
Route 132 in Bécancour, Quebec
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
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|---|---|
| Autoroute Antonio-Barrette | |
| Route information | |
| Length: | 14.0 km (8.7 mi) |
| Existed: | 1966 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| South end: |
 Autoroute 40 in Lavaltrie, Quebec
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| North end: |
 Route 158 in Joliette, Quebec
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| Highway system | |
| Quebec provincial highways | |
The autoroute system is a network of freeways within the province of Quebec, Canada, operating under the same principle of controlled access as the Interstate Highway System in the United States and the 400-series highways in neighbouring Ontario. The Autoroutes are the backbone of Quebec's highway system, spanning almost 2,300 km (1,429 mi). The speed limit on the Autoroutes is generally 100 km/h (62 mph) in rural areas and 70–90 km/h (43–56 mph) in urban areas; most roads are made of asphalt concrete.
The word autoroute is a portmanteau of auto and route, equivalent to "motorway" in English, and has become the Quebec French equivalent of "expressway". In the 1950s, when the first Autoroutes were being planned, the design documents called them autostrades, from the Italian word autostrada.
Autoroutes are identified by blue-and-red shields. The red header of the shield contains a white image representing a highway overpass, and the blue lower portion of the shield contains the Autoroute's number in white, along with a fleur-de-lis, which is a provincial symbol of Quebec.
Most Autoroute and road traffic signs in the province are in French, though English is also used on federally-financed or -owned routes, such as the Bonaventure Expressway in Montreal. To surmount the language barrier, however, most signs in Quebec use pictograms and text is avoided in most cases, with the exceptions usually only being the names of control cities. Other exceptions that are posted in both languages is the illegal use of radar detectors when entering the province that reads "DÉTECTEURS DE RADAR INTERDITS/RADAR DETECTORS PROHIBITED", as well as areas where roads can be slippery due to melting ice and snow, marked "DEGEL/THAW".
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Wikipedia