Quebec Autoroute 70
Autoroute 70, or A-70, is a short Autoroute located in the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region of northern Quebec. It is the only Autoroute that does not connect to any other Autoroutes, although other Autoroutes have discontiguous segments such as A-20 and A-30. A-70 was first created in 1983, and has since been extended three times.
| ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Autoroute du Saguenay Autoroute Alma-La Baie (future) | ||||
 | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by Transports Québec | ||||
| Length | 30.8 km[1][2] (19.1 mi) | |||
| Existed | 1983[2]–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end |  Route 170 in Saguenay | |||
 Route 372 in Saguenay Route 175 in Saguenay | ||||
| East end | Route 170 in Saguenay | |||
| Location | ||||
| Major cities | Saguenay | |||
| Towns | Alma (future) | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
A-70 is 30.8 km (19.1 mi) long, however extensions are being constructed in both directions. A-70 is only partially completed; it acts primarily as a bypass route around the urban area of Saguenay. The route was slow to develop; until 2001 it was an extremely short stub, fewer than 6 km (3.7 mi) long.
A-70 will be extended westward to Alma and eastward to La Baie. A new alignment has already been determined for the westernmost section of A-70, and the central section (part of Route 170) is already a four-lane divided highway; service roads will be constructed as it is not limited access. The proposed route for the eastern section has also been determined and has been built to the Saguenay-Bagotville Airport.
The ultimate length of A-70 will be around 64 km (39.8 mi).
History
The A-70 was designed to provide a limited-access highway link between Alma and La Baie. The autoroute has been built in increments since the early 1980s. It took nearly ten years for the first eight kilometers to be built. During the 1990s, highway planners modified the plans. Rather than building A-70 to parallel Route 170 between 8e Rang in Saint-Bruno (km 5) and St-Benedict Road (km 25), instead Route 170 was rebuilt as a four-lane divided highway. This extension of A-70 was completed by 1999. Three years later, an additional 17 kilometres were opened, connecting this rebuilt section of Route 170 with the original portion of A-70.
Future
To date, 19 kilometres (12 mi) of highway remain to be completed of the freeway link between Alma and La Baie. Transports Québec has conducted a feasibility study for the western section while continuing to acquire property to provide a right of way.
Exit list
The entire route is located in Saguenay, Quebec, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean.
| km | mi | Exit | Destinations | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.00 | 0.00 | 26 | Route 170 (Boulevard du Royaume) / Chemin St-Benoit | Road continues west as Route 170 | ||
| 33 | Rue St-Hubert – Jonquiere Centre-Ville, Lac-Kenogami | |||||
| 36 | Route 372 (Boulevard René-Lévesque) | Alsos serves Rue Panet | ||||
| 39 | Rue Mathias / Boulevard Mellon | |||||
| 42 | Route 170 (Boulevard du Royaume) | Signed as exits 42O (west) and 42E (east) westbound | ||||
| 45 | Boulevard Saint-Paul | |||||
| 19.00 | 11.81 | 47 | Route 175 (Boulevard Talbot) – Chicoutimi, Québec | |||
| 50 | Route 170 (Boulevard du Royaume) – Laterriére | Former eastern terminus at temporary at-grade intersection replaced with an interchange to the east | ||||
| 24.20 | 15.04 | – |  Route 170 (Chemin Saint-Anicet) – Aéroport Bagotville | Eastern terminus; roundabout intersection | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | ||||||
References
- Ministère des transports, "Distances routières", page (?), Les Publications du Québec, 2005
- "Répertoire des autoroutes du Québec". Retrieved 2020-07-06.