Honoré Mercier Bridge

Honoré Mercier Bridge
The twin spans of the Mercier Bridge as seen from the Monette-Lafleur bus terminal.
Carries	Route 138
Crosses	St. Lawrence River and Saint Lawrence Seaway
Locale	Kahnawake, Quebec and Montreal, Quebec
Characteristics
Total length	1.361 km (0.846 mi)
Height	Varies from 12.44 to 33.38 m (40.8 to 109.5 ft)
Number of lanes	4 (2 per span)
History
Opened	1934 (twinned in 1963)
Statistics
Daily traffic	82,192
Toll	0.25$ (abolished in 1963)

The Honoré Mercier Bridge in Quebec, Canada, connects the Montreal borough of LaSalle on the Island of Montreal with the Mohawk reserve of Kahnawake, Quebec and the suburb of Châteauguay on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River. It is the most direct southerly route from the island of Montreal toward the US border. It carries Route 138, originally Route 4. It is 1.361 km (0.846 mi) in length and contains four steel trusses on its first section. The height of the bridge varies from 12.44 m (40.8 ft) to 33.38 m (109.5 ft) with the highest sections located over the St. Lawrence Seaway. The bridge is named after former premier of Quebec Honoré Mercier.

The bridge has two lanes of traffic in each direction and a total span of nearly two kilometres. At its highest point, the bridge rises 36 metres above the river. There is a narrow sidewalk on the side headed to Châteauguay that was for use by foot or bicycle, however it hasn't been open since major repairs began in 2009. The roadway has been characterized by numerous repairs.

An estimated 30 million vehicles use the bridge every year.

Before the bridge was built there was a ferry service.

The bridge, known in project as "Saint-Louis bridge" (for nearby located Lake Saint-Louis and the parish of Saint-Louis-de-Caughnawaga, today part of the Kahnawake reserve), was designed by 11 French-Canadian engineers, who were all graduates of the École Polytechnique de Montréal, and was built by the Dominion Bridge Company Ltd under a government-funded work program. Construction of the bridge began in November 1932 and was completed in the early summer of 1934. It was opened to traffic on June 22, 1934 (named "Honoré-Mercier" during its inauguration by mayor Taschereau, 10 months ahead of schedule with a toll of 50 cents for an automobile and driver—later reduced to 25 cents. Today there is no toll charged for crossing the bridge.