Hwy. 20 ramps reopen in Turcot Interchange after concrete falls from the structure

Two ramps toward Highway 20 West have reopened after a piece of concrete fell from part of the Turcot Interchange early this morning, according toTransports Qubec.

The chunk became dislodged from the old part of the structure and fell onto Pullman Street, underneath the interchange, early Tuesday.

It is unclear how big the pieces were or how many pieces fell, said Guillaume Paradis, Transports Qubec's spokesperson.

As a preventive measure, the ramps from the Dcarie Expressway and from Highway 15 North to Highway 20 were closed around5:15a.m. andstayed blocked off for the duration of the morning rush hour.

Transports Qubecsaid they were reopened around noon.

Engineers weredispatched to the interchange to carry out an emergency inspection and determine whether the concrete fell because of a structural problem.

They also checked for other unstable pieces of concrete in order to remove them, said Paradis.

Traffic on Highway 15 is generally heavy through the interchange.

Paradis suggested motorists coming from the South Shore should take Mercier Bridge instead of the Champlain.

If it's too late for that, he suggestedheading to the Bonaventure Expressway, then to the Ville-Marie Expressway westbound.

Those trying to head west who are starting on the island were advised to use the local roadnetwork.

In November, astretch of Highway 15 North had to be closed after a crane cable snapped while moving a piece of concrete during work to dismantle part of the interchange.

The crane's operator was able to placethe piece of concrete onto a new part of the interchange that was not open to traffic at the time.