Quebec Autoroute 55

Autoroute 55 (also called Autoroute de l'Énergie north of the Autoroute 20 and Autoroute Joseph-Armand Bombardier south of it) is an important north–south Autoroute and the only one running in that direction in central Quebec. It is the longest north-south Autoroute, beginning as the continuation of I-91 at the Canada–United States border near Stanstead and continuing to Shawinigan, where it downgrades to Route 155. The total length of A-55 is currently 247 km (153.5 mi) long, including concurrencies with Autoroute 10, Autoroute 20 and Autoroute 40.

Autoroute 55
Autoroute Joseph-Armand Bombardier
Autoroute de l'Énergie
Route information
Maintained by Transports Québec
Length247.0 km[1][2] (153.5 mi)
Existed1964[2]–present
Major junctions
South end I-91 at the Canada–United States border in Stanstead, Quebec
  A-10 in Magog
A-410 in Sherbrooke
A-10 / A-610 in Sherbrooke
A-20 (TCH) in Drummondville
A-20 (TCH) / A-955 in Sainte-Eulalie
A-30 / Route 132 in Bécancour
Route 138 in Trois-Rivières
A-40 in Trois-Rivières
North end Route 155 in Shawinigan, Quebec
Location
Major citiesSherbrooke, Drummondville, Trois-Rivières, Shawinigan
Highway system
A-50 A-70

Route description

Autoroute 55 connects the mid-sized communities of Sherbrooke, Drummondville, Trois-Rivières, and Shawinigan and the smaller communities in between. The most notable feature on A-55 is the Laviolette Bridge between Trois-Rivières and Bécancour, which is one of the longest bridges in Quebec and in Canada.

A-55 had a short "gap" between Bécancour and Drummondville until October 2006. The gap resulted from Transports Quebec's original intention of bringing A-55 southeast towards Victoriaville along what is now Autoroute 955 before shifting southwest to rejoin existing A-55 near Richmond. However, plans changed in the 1970s, and the present routing was chosen. The southern section was originally supposed to be Autoroute 51 and was intended to continue to the planned extension of Autoroute 30 in Pierreville. A-55 was signed along Route 155 (which is not an Autoroute-standard highway) until the new route was completed.

All of the southern portion of A-55 became a full four-lane freeway by the end of October 2006. The gap being filled in the northern portion will initially be a two-lane freeway for about 20 km (12.4 mi), but it is intended to ultimately be four lanes.

The designation Autoroute Joseph-Armand Bombardier is in honour of Quebec businessman Joseph-Armand Bombardier, who lived in Valcourt, near where A-55 passes and who invented the snowmobile there. His company, Bombardier Inc., started by building snowmobiles and eventually grew into a major international manufacturer of transit vehicles and aircraft.

The designation Autoroute de l'Énergie means "Energy Highway" since it provides access to the Gentilly Nuclear Generating Station in Bécancour and the hydroelectric facilities in Shawinigan and the Haut-Saint-Maurice area, but the section north of A-30 is likely to remain at its comparatively short length to Shawinigan for the foreseeable future.

Exit list

RegionRCM or ETLocationkmmiOld exitNew exitDestinationsNotes
EstrieMemphrémagogStanstead I-91 south St. JohnsburyContinues in Vermont
Canada–United States border
Derby Line–Rock Island Border Crossing
South end of Autoroute Joseph-Armand Bombardier
Boulevard Notre-Dame (Route 247 west)At-grade intersection; traffic signals
2 Route 143 Stanstead
Stanstead-Est6Montée Baie Saint-Thomas
Chemin CurtisAt-grade intersection
Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley21 Route 141 Ayer's Cliff, Coaticook
29 Route 108 Sainte-Catherine-de-Hatley, North Hatley, Lennoxville
Magog32Rue-Saint-Patrice, Boulevard Industriel
33 Route 112 – Magog (Centre-Ville)
71[lower-roman 1]34
121[lower-roman 1]
A-10 west MontréalA-55 branches east; south (west) end of A-10 concurrency; northbound signed as exits 34-E (east) and 34-O (west); southbound signed as 121
Memphrémagog / MagogSherbrooke boundary72[lower-roman 1]
36
123[lower-roman 1] Rue Sherbrook (Route 112) to Route 249 – Magog (Centre-Ville), Saint-Denis-de-Brompton
City of Sherbrooke41128[lower-roman 1] Boulevard Bourque (Route 112)
46133[lower-roman 1]Chemin Saint-Roch Nord
50137[lower-roman 1] Route 220 (Boulevard Industriel), Chemin de Saint-Élie
54140[lower-roman 1] A-410 east (Autoroute Jacques-O'Bready) to Route 108 (Rue King)
55141[lower-roman 1]Boulevard de Monseigneur-Fortier
143[lower-roman 1] A-610 east (Autoroute Louis-Bilodeau) to Route 112 Centre-Ville Sherbrooke, East Angus, Lac-MéganticA-55 turns north; north (east) end of A-10 concurrency
58 Chemin des Écossais (Route 222) Saint-Denis-de-Brompton, Valcourt
60Rue Laval
Le Val-Saint-FrançoisWindsor71 Route 249 Windsor, Saint-Grégoire-de-Greenlay, Saint-François-Xavier-de-BromptonSigned as exits 71N (north) and 71S (south) northbound
Melbourne85 Route 243 Racine, Valcourt, Melbourne
88 Route 116 Acton Vale, Richmond, Val-des-Sources
Ulverton98Chemin Mooney
Centre-du-QuébecDrummondL'Avenir103Lefebvre, L'Avenir, Ulverton, Durham-Sud
Drummondville111Route Caya
116 Route 139 Wickham, Acton Vale, Granby, Saint-Nicéphore
122Boulevard Jean-de-Brébeuf - Drummondville
125 Route 122 Saint-Germain-de-Grantham, Drummondville
128
173[lower-roman 2]
A-20 (TCH) west MontréalA-55 branches east; south (west) end of A-20 concurrency
North end of Autoroute Joseph-Armand Bombardier
175[lower-roman 2] Boulevard Lemire (Route 143 north) Saint-Bonaventure, Saint-François-du-LacSouth (west) end of Route 143 concurrency
177[lower-roman 2] Route 143 south Saint-Majorique-de-Grantham, DrummondvilleNorth (east) end of Route 143 concurrency
179[lower-roman 2]Chemin du Golf
Saint-Charles-de-Drummond181[lower-roman 2]Saint-Charles-de-Drummond, Drummondville, Saint-Joachim-de-Courval
Saint-Cyrille-de-Wendover185[lower-roman 2] Route 255 Baie-du-Febvre, Saint-Cyrille-de-Wendover, Saint-Félix-de-Kingsey
Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil191[lower-roman 2]Sainte-Brigitte-des-Saults
196[lower-roman 2] Route 259 Nicolet, Sainte-Perpétue, Notre-Dame-du-Bon-Conseil, Quebec
DrummondNicolet-Yamaska boundaryNotre-Dame-du-Bon-ConseilSaint-Léonard-d'Aston boundary200[lower-roman 2]Saint-Léonard-d'Aston
Nicolet-YamaskaSaint-Léonard-d'Aston202[lower-roman 2]Rang du Moulin-Rouge
Sainte-Eulalie204[lower-roman 2]Rang des Cédres, Rang des Plaines
210[lower-roman 2]
145
A-955 south Victoriaville, Saint-Albert, Warwick, Bécancour
A-20 (TCH) east to Route 161 – Quebec, Sainte-Eulalie, Saint-Valère
A-55 branches north; north (east) end of A-20 concurrency; A-955 exit 15
South end of Autoroute de l'Énergie
Saint-Wenceslas1539e Rang - Saint-Léonard-d'Aston, Saint-Wenceslas
Saint-Célestin (Municipality) Route 226 Saint-Célestin (Village)At-grade intersection; traffic signals
BécancourBécancourRang PrinceAt-grade intersection
Chemin Forest - Précieux-SangAt-grade intersection
Chemin ThibodeauAt-grade intersection
173Saint-Grégoire, Nicolet, Wôlinak
176 A-30 to Route 132 Bécancour, Sainte-AngèleExit 209 on A-30
Saint Lawrence RiverLaviolette Bridge
MauricieCity of Trois-Rivières181 Rue Notre-Dame, Boulevard Gene-H.-Kruger (Route 138)
182 A-40 east – Trois-Rivières Centre-Ville, QuebecSouth end of A-40 concurrency; exit 197 on A-40
183Boulevard Jean-XXIII
186 A-40 west / Boulevard des Forges MontrealNorth end of A-40 concurrency; exit 196 on A-40
191Boulevard Industriel, Boulevard Saint-Michel
196Boulevard des Forges - Saint-Thomas-de-Caxton
MaskinongéSaint-Étienne-des-Grès202Saint-Étienne-des-Grès, Saint-Barnabé
206Saint-Boniface
Saint-Boniface211 Route 153 Saint-Boniface, Shawinigan
City of Shawinigan181 Rue Notre-Dame, Boulevard Gene-H.-Kruger (Route 138)
216Rue Burrill
217 Rue Garnier (Route 351) Saint-Mathieu-du-Parc
220Boulevard Hubert-Biermans, Boulevard Vallée-du-Parc
2235e avenue, 25e rue
2268e rue, 4e rue - Grand-Mère, Saint-Jean des Piles
To Route 153 / 90e Avenue Saint-Tite
Route 155 north Grandes-Piles, La Tuque
Roundabout; A-55 northern terminus, continues north as Route 155
North end of Autoroute de l'Énergie
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
  1. A-10 exit number
  2. A-20 exit number

References

  1. Ministère des transports, "Distances routières", page (?), Les Publications du Québec, 2005
  2. "Répertoire des autoroutes du Québec" (in French). Transports Québec. Archived from the original on 2010-01-11. Retrieved 2008-02-23.

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