Chronic morning and afternoon traffic congestion on the Highway 40 Île-aux-Tourtes and Highway 20 Galipeault bridges is having a major negative impact on St. Lazare residents, said Mayor Geneviève Lachance.

"It's a nightmare. Both bridges are problematic because they're backlogged at rush hour. I get complaints about it every day from our residents," Lachance told Néomédia during a recent interview.

The situation on the Île-aux-Tourtes bridge is compounded because one lane in each direction has been closed because of safety concerns regarding the structural integrity of the 60-year-old span. Preliminary work has begun to build a replacement bridge, but it's only expected to be completed by 2029. 

In the meantime, residents in the Vaudreuil-Soulanges region will have to contend with continuous weekday rush-hour traffic to and from the western tip of the Island of Montreal.

For St. Lazare residents, the traffic situation is compounded on Route de la Cité-des-Jeunes, a two-lane highway also known as Highway 340, because it cannot handle the ever-increasing number of vehicles.

More motorists west of St. Lazare are using the highway and the volume of traffic is expected to worsen as new development projects begin and when the new Vaudreuil-Soulanges hospital opens in 2026.

"There's also a safety issue because the speed limit is 70 km per hour. It's difficult for people to get in and out of their businesses and neighbourhoods. The ideal solution would be to enlarge the 340 into a four-lane highway to deal with new developments planned for the sector," said Lachance.

The mayor has also met with MTQ officials several times to ask them to enlarge the highway but the requests have been repeatedly denied. "They said that's not going to happen although they offered to add new turning lanes on the 340 at Chemin Ste. Angélique and Chemin St. Louis," she said.

"I don't hear about solutions from the MTQ. They need to put an emphasis on our situation but seem to think it isn't an issue," said Lachance. 

The mayor is also frustrated about the lack of adequate public transit services in the region. "I don't understand the lack of planning and vision by the MTQ. They emphasize the need for public transit but ignore their own words. It's highly frustrating. We're being totally ignored," said Lachance.

"I think all the regional mayors feel the same way. There is no real priority to deal with these issues," she added.