Autoroute 10 (A-10) is an Autoroute of Quebec in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

that links greater

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

to key population centres in

Montérégie Montérégie () is an administrative region in the southwest part of Quebec. It includes the cities of Boucherville, Brossard, Châteauguay, Longueuil, Saint-Hyacinthe, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Salaberry-de-Valleyfield and Vaudreuil-Dorion. The ...

and

Estrie Estrie () is an administrative region of Quebec that comprises the Eastern Townships. ''Estrie'', a French neologism, was coined as a derivative of ''est'', "east". Originally settled by anglophones, today it is about 90 per cent francophone. Angl ...

, including

Brossard Brossard (, , ) is a municipality in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada and is part of the Greater Montreal area. According to the 2021 census, Brossard's population was 91,525. It shares powers with the urban agglomeration of Longueuil a ...

Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu () is a city in eastern Montérégie in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec, about southeast of Montreal. It is situated on the west bank of the Richelieu River at the northernmost naviga ...

, Granby, and

Sherbrooke Sherbrooke ( ; ) is a city in southern Quebec, Canada. It is at the confluence of the Saint-François and Magog rivers in the heart of the Estrie administrative region. Sherbrooke is also the name of a territory equivalent to a regional count ...

. The A-10 also provides access to popular winter resorts at

Bromont Bromont is a city in southern Quebec, Canada, at the base of Mont Brome; it is in the Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality. The Bromont area and its resort, Ski Bromont, is well known as a tourist destination for its downhill skiing, m ...

, Owl's Head,

Mont Sutton Mont Sutton is a ski area in the Eastern Townships located within the town of Sutton, Quebec, Canada, about 5 km directly east of its urban district. In 1960, the hill was turned into a downhill ski centre by the Boulanger family. Known f ...

and

Mont Orford Mount Orford (french: Mont Orford) is a mountain and ski resort located in the Mont-Orford National Park in the Eastern Townships region of Quebec, Canada. It is northwest of the centre of the city of Magog. History In 2006, the provincial gov ...

. Motorists travelling on the A-10 can see eight of nine

Monteregian Hills The Monteregian Hills (french: Collines Montérégiennes) is a linear chain of isolated hills in Montreal and Montérégie, between the Laurentians and the Appalachians. Etymology The first definition of the Monteregian Hills came about in 190 ...

Mount Royal Mount Royal (french: link=no, Mont Royal, ) is a large intrusive rock hill or small mountain in the city of Montreal, immediately west of Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The best-known hypothesis for the origin of the name Montreal is the hi ...

Mont Saint-Bruno Mont Saint-Bruno is part of the Monteregian Hills in southern Quebec, Canada. Its summit stands high and lies east of downtown Montreal. This mountain has a ski resort, a natural area, and an apple orchard. Forests of beech, maple, oak, hickor ...

Mont Saint-Hilaire Mont Saint-Hilaire (English: Mount Saint-Hilaire; abe, Wigwômadenizibo; see for other names) is an isolated hill, high, in the Montérégie region of southern Quebec. It is about thirty kilometres east of Montreal, and immediately east of the ...

Mont Saint-Grégoire Mont Saint-Grégoire (height: ) is a mountain in the Montérégie region of southern Quebec, Canada. It is composed of essexite and syenite, strongly contrasting with the surrounding sedimentary rocks. The area around Mont Saint-Grégoire is know ...

Mont Rougemont Mont Rougemont (Abenaki: Wigwômedenek) is part of the Monteregian Hills in southern Quebec. It is composed of igneous rock and hornfels. The summit stands above sea level. The mountain is mostly covered with sugar maple-dominated forest. Apple ...

Mont Yamaska Mont Yamaska (in English, Mount Yamaska) (in Abenaki, Wigwômadenekhttp://www.toponymie.gouv.qc.ca/ct/pdf/la%20toponymie%20des%20Abenaquis.pdf?ts=0.14881141134537756 ) is part of the Monteregian Hills in southern Quebec. Its summit stands above s ...

Mont Shefford Mont Shefford is a Monteregian Hill located in Shefford in the Estrie region of Quebec, Canada. Mont Shefford is tall, and was home to the Ski Shefford ski resort which closed in 2006. Geology Mount Shefford was formed some 125 million yea ...

and

Mont Brome Mont Brome (aka ''Bromont'', ''Bromount'', ''Mount Brome'') is part of the Monteregian Hills in southern Quebec. Its summit stands above sea level. It is near the town of Bromont, Quebec. The ski resort Ski Bromont lies on its slopes. Geology Mo ...

. The ninth,

Mont Mégantic Mont Mégantic (; Abenaki: Namesokanjik) is a monadnock located in Québec, Canada, about north of the border between Québec and the U.S. states of Maine and New Hampshire. Mégantic is on the border of the regional county municipalities o ...

is located beyond the eastern terminus of the autoroute.

Description

The A-10 carries the name Autoroute

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; it, Bonaventura ; la, Bonaventura de Balneoregio; 1221 – 15 July 1274), born Giovanni di Fidanza, was an Italian Catholic Franciscan, bishop, cardinal, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister G ...

(''

Expressway'') from its start in Montreal's city centre to the Champlain Bridge. From there until its terminus in Sherbrooke, the A-10 is called the Autoroute des

Cantons-de-l'Est The Eastern Townships (french: Cantons de l'Est) is an historical administrative region in southeastern Quebec, Canada. It lies between the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the American border, and extends from Granby in the southwest, to Drummond ...

(

Eastern Townships The Eastern Townships (french: Cantons de l'Est) is an historical administrative region in southeastern Quebec, Canada. It lies between the St. Lawrence Lowlands and the American border, and extends from Granby in the southwest, to Drummondv ...

Expressway), a reference to the historic name given to the region east of Montreal and north of the U.S. border. The road's main material is

asphalt concrete Asphalt concrete (commonly called asphalt, blacktop, or pavement in North America, and tarmac, bitumen macadam, or rolled asphalt in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland) is a composite material commonly used to surface roads, parkin ...

, many parts of the highway are bordered with

gravel Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gravel is classifi ...

Autoroute Bonaventure

The A-10 begins in

Downtown Montreal Downtown Montreal ( French: ''Centre-Ville de Montréal'') is the central business district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The district is situated on the southernmost slope of Mount Royal, and occupies the western portion of the borough of Vil ...

as an extension of

University Street A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...

near

Place Bonaventure Place Bonaventure is an office, exhibition, and hotel complex in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, adjacent to the city's Central Station. At in size, Place Bonaventure was the second largest commercial building in the world at the time of its ...

. Two underground ramps provide an interchange with the R-136. At km 1, the A-10 crosses the

Lachine Canal The Lachine Canal ( in French (language), French) is a canal passing through the southwestern part of the Island of Montreal, Quebec, Canada, running 14.5 kilometres (9 miles) from the Old Port of Montreal to Lake Saint-Louis, through the boroug ...

, then travels along the

St. Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (french: Fleuve Saint-Laurent, ) is a large river in the middle latitudes of North America. Its headwaters begin flowing from Lake Ontario in a (roughly) northeasterly direction, into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, connecting ...

to an interchange with the

A-15 A15 or A-15 may refer to: * A15 phases, a crystallographic structure type of certain intermetallic compounds * A15 road, in several countries * Antonov A-15, a Soviet glider * British NVC community A15 (Elodea canadensis community), a British Isle ...

and

A-20 A20, A 20, A.20 or A-20 may refer to: Vehicles * A-20 Havoc, a U.S.-designed attack aircraft used in World War II * A20 heavy tank, a British tank which did not enter production but of which a downsized version became the A22 Churchill tank * A-20 ...

. This interchange is partially on the

Island of Montreal The Island of Montreal (french: Île de Montréal) is a large island in southwestern Quebec, Canada, that is the site of a number of municipalities including most of the city of Montreal and is the most populous island in Canada. It is the main ...

and partially on

Nuns' Island Nuns' Island (officially Île des Sœurs; ) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River that forms a part of the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is part of the borough of Verdun. History Originally called Île Saint-Paul in honour of the f ...

. At km 2, it crosses (but does not provide access to) Route 112 at the north end of

Victoria Bridge Victoria Bridge may be a reference to: Bridges ;Australia * Victoria Bridge, Brisbane, a road bridge across the Brisbane River in Brisbane * Victoria Bridge, Devonport a road ridge across the Mersey River in Devonport, Tasmania * Victoria Bridge, M ...

. The A-10 has mostly two lanes in each direction on the majority of its length and the speed limit is mostly 100 km/h. The A-10 is

multiplexed In telecommunications and computer networking, multiplexing (sometimes contracted to muxing) is a method by which multiple analog or digital signals are combined into one signal over a shared medium. The aim is to share a scarce resource - a ...

with the A-15 and A-20 across the Champlain Bridge. All three autoroutes diverge soon after reaching the southern edge of the bridge. The A-10 serves as an important link for

commuters Commuting is periodically recurring travel between one's place of residence and place of work or study, where the traveler, referred to as a commuter, leaves the boundary of their home community. By extension, it can sometimes be any regul ...

travelling to downtown Montreal from suburban South Shore communities via the Champlain Bridge. It also provides access to the

Montreal Technoparc The Parc d'entreprises de la Pointe-Saint-Charles, formerly known as the Montreal Technoparc and Adaport Victoria, is an industrial park and former industrial dump in the Pointe-Saint-Charles neighbourhood of Montreal, between the Champlain and Vi ...

and the Concordia Bridge. The A-10 in Montreal is jointly owned by the

city of Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

, the Société Les Ponts Jacques Cartier, and Federal Bridge Corporation (an agency of the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

Autoroute des Cantons de l'Est

At km 8, the A-10 crosses

Taschereau Boulevard Taschereau Boulevard is a major suburban boulevard located on the south shore of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is a section of Quebec Route 134 and runs from Longueuil to Candiac (junction of Autoroute 15). It is named after the prominent Quebec ...

Bus lane A bus lane or bus-only lane is a lane restricted to buses, often on certain days and times, and generally used to speed up public transport that would be otherwise held up by traffic congestion. The related term busway describes a roadway ...

s run in both directions along the median for four kilometers between the southern end of the Champlain Bridge and Milan Boulevard. Crossing Brossard, the A-10 runs along the northern edge of the

Quartier DIX30 Quartier DIX30 (also simply known as ''Dix 30'' in French, and ''Distrande'' in English) is a commercial lifestyle centre located in Brossard, Quebec. It is considered Canada's first lifestyle centre and occupies an area of in the L section of ...

shopping complex before reaching interchanges with the A-30 at km 11 and the A-35 at km 22. The A-10 crosses the

Richelieu River The Richelieu River () is a river of Quebec, Canada, and a major right-bank tributary of the St. Lawrence River. It rises at Lake Champlain, from which it flows northward through Quebec and empties into the St. Lawrence. It was formerly kno ...

at km 28 and enters a rich agricultural region. Between Bromont (km 74) and Magog (km 121) the A-10 passes through a mountainous region, close to two of Quebec's major ski centres (Mont Orford and Mont Brome). Near the northern end of

Lake Memphremagog Lake Memphremagog (; french: Lac Memphrémagog) is a fresh water glacial lake located between Newport, Vermont, United States and Magog, Quebec, Canada. The lake spans both Quebec and Vermont, but is mostly in Quebec. Most of the watershed that ...

, the A-10 reaches an interchange with the A-55 at km 121. The A-10 continues east as a

concurrency Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to: Law * Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea'' * Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...

with A-55. Between km 123 and 128, Route 112 functions as a

frontage road A frontage road (also known as an access road, outer road, service road, feeder road, or parallel road) is a local road running parallel to a higher-speed, limited-access road. A frontage road is often used to provide access to private drivew ...

. A-10 and A-55 bypass the city of Sherbrooke to the east and north, reaching interchanges with

spur route A spur route is a short road forming a branch from a longer, more important road such as a freeway, Interstate Highway, or motorway. A bypass or beltway should not be considered a true spur route as it typically reconnects with another or the s ...

s A-410 at km 140 and A-610 at km 143. The A-10 reaches its terminus at the junction with A-610, while A-55 continues north to

Drummondville Drummondville is a city in the Centre-du-Québec region of Quebec, located east of Montreal on the Saint-François River. The population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 79,258. The mayor of Drummondville is Stéphanie Lacoste. Drummondville is ...

. The portion east of Autoroute 55 (linking that autoroute with Route 112) was renumbered as Autoroute 610 on September 29, 2006

History

The long Autoroute de l'Est (''Eastern Expressway'') was opened to traffic in December 1964. Extending from the southern end of the Champlain Bridge to Magog, the highway replaced the old Quebec Route 1 (now Route 112) as the main road link between the two points. An official opening for the highway came one year later, in 1965. The A-10 was the second autoroute, after the Quebec Autoroute 15, Laurentian Autoroute outside Montreal, to be commissioned. Both were opened as toll highways by a Quebec government agency. The A-10 featured five toll stations (at current km 22, km 37, km 68, km 90, and km 115). Motorists were charged $1.50 to make the entire trip. The Autoroute Bonaventure through Montreal opened in 1967 to link approach roads to

Expo 67 The 1967 International and Universal Exposition, commonly known as Expo 67, was a general exhibition from April 27 to October 29, 1967. It was a category One World's Fair held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is considered to be one of the most su ...

with the Champlain Bridge. The Autoroute des Cantons de l'Est was the first autoroute in Quebec to use exit numbers based on distance instead of in sequential order, as had previously been the case. As Canada had not yet adopted the

metric system The metric system is a system of measurement that succeeded the Decimal, decimalised system based on the metre that had been introduced in French Revolution, France in the 1790s. The historical development of these systems culminated in the d ...

, exit numbers referenced the distance in

miles The mile, sometimes the international mile or statute mile to distinguish it from other miles, is a British imperial unit and United States customary unit of distance; both are based on the older English unit of length equal to 5,280 English ...

from the southern end of the Champlain Bridge. The A-10 did not originally have a route number. Instead, route marker signs featured a red triangular

shield A shield is a piece of personal armour held in the hand, which may or may not be strapped to the wrist or forearm. Shields are used to intercept specific attacks, whether from close-ranged weaponry or projectiles such as arrows, by means of a ...

featuring the name of the route. Unusually, the directional signs were also originally red. Later, blue shields and signs replaced the red versions. In 1985, the toll system was abolished, and the use of the triangular shields was discontinued. Blue directional signs have gradually been converted to standard green signs used elsewhere in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. In 2013, motorists could still see blue signs at entrances to and exits of the autoroute. Between 1988 and 2006, A-10 departed its multiplex with A-55 at km 143 and continued eastward for 11 km to a final terminus with Route 112. In October 2006, that section of A-10 was renumbered as A-610. The city of Montreal announced in January 2013 that it would take over the SHM's responsibilities, citing concerns over transparency. The Société du Havre de Montréal (SHM) transformed the autoroute into an urban thoroughfare as part of a broader project to redevelop Montreal's harbourfront. Demolition of the autoroute’s elevated stretch began in July 2016 and the new Bonaventure Park was completed in September 2017.

Future

A current proposal to build the East-West Highway across central and northern

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

calls for the A-10 to be extended to the U.S. border at Coburn Gore where it would meet the new highway. Doing so would create a new and more direct limited-access highway link between Maine, the

Maritime Provinces The Maritimes, also called the Maritime provinces, is a region of Eastern Canada consisting of three provinces: New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. The Maritimes had a population of 1,899,324 in 2021, which makes up 5.1% of Ca ...

through

New Brunswick Route 1 Route 1 is a highway in the southern part of the Canadian province of New Brunswick. It begins in the west from the Canada–United States border at St. Stephen, and runs east for to Route 2 at River Glade. The entire highway is a 4-lane con ...

, and Quebec.

Exit list

References

External links

A-10 at Exitlists.comSteve Anderson's MontrealRoads.com: Bonaventure Autoroute (A-10)Steve Anderson's MontrealRoads.com: Eastern Townships Autoroute (A-10)Transports Quebec Map
{{Quebec Autoroutes 10 Roads in Montreal Transport in Brossard Transport in Granby, Quebec Transport in Magog, Quebec Transport in Sherbrooke Former toll roads in Canada