Unfinished Highway 20: elected officials, business leaders and citizens unite to demand its inclusion in the next PQI

VAUDREUIL-DORION, QC, Sept. 8, 2026 /CNW/ -- With Québec's general election approaching on October 5 and the next Québec Infrastructure Plan (PQI) now being prepared, the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Développement Vaudreuil-Soulanges (DEV), the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Vaudreuil-Soulanges (CCIVS) and the citizens' committee Pour une vraie 20 are issuing a joint appeal to all party leaders: to include the optimization of the missing 7km section of Highway 20 in the next PQI.

Elected officials, members of the business community and local residents mobilize in support of optimizing Highway 20 between Vaudreuil-Dorion and Île Perrot.

Each year, more than 21.5 million vehicles travel this segment, roughly 64,000 a day on average, with peaks reaching 90,000 trips. Freight trucks account for one trip in ten. According to an independent study by Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton, the status quo could represent $1.1 billion in avoidable losses over 20 years.

Gathered this morning for a press conference, elected officials, business leaders and citizens underscored the urgent need to act to complete a national piece of infrastructure that has remained unfinished for more than 60 years. In Vaudreuil-Dorion and on Île Perrot, Highway 20 currently turns into an urban boulevard punctuated by ten traffic lights, even though it is one of the main road corridors between Montréal and Toronto.

A regional consensus ready to act

"It is unacceptable that in Québec, in 2026, such a strategic piece of infrastructure remains unfinished. The 23 municipalities of the MRC speak with one voice, and the Ministry of Transport has reached the same conclusion: an uninterrupted highway is the way forward. All that is missing now is a political decision to include the optimization of Highway 20 in the next PQI," said Patrick Bousez, Warden of the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges and Mayor of Rivière-Beaudette.

This position is supported by the brief submitted by the MRC in 2024 and by the opportunity study conducted by Québec's Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, whose findings, released in May 2025, point in the same direction.

Highway 20 was to be completed during the 1960s. As early as 1964, the Québec government carried out expropriations to make it possible. More than six decades later, part of the corridor nonetheless remains unfinished. "Back in 1964, the Québec government expropriated families and merchants to complete Highway 20. Sixty years later, the land still belongs to it, but the project has not been built. This unfinished state has left a scar and, to this day, continues to create significant problems for our population and our development. Our families did their part 60 years ago. It is time for the government to do its part," said Paul Dumoulin, Mayor of Vaudreuil-Dorion.

A brake on economic development

For the economic sector, the impacts are felt daily.

"Doing nothing is not free: the status quo is already costing us $1.1 billion over 20 years, in congestion and missed opportunities. We are already paying for this highway without reaping its benefits. The studies are done, the land is publicly owned, the solution is known, all that is missing is inclusion in the PQI," said Danie Deschênes, President of DEV, Mayor of Notre-Dame-de-l'Île-Perrot and representative of the mayors of Île Perrot.

For the business community, the issue is also one of regional competitiveness. The corridor plays a major role in trade, while the congestion and frequent stops caused by the ten traffic lights hamper the movement of both people and goods.

"Our businesses have long called for the optimization of Highway 20. The current situation drives customers away, delays deliveries, wastes time and creates labour challenges. The consequences for our economy are very real. And these impacts are not felt solely by the business community here: from the Port of Montréal to Toronto, companies bear the consequences," said Mélanie Bossé, President of the CCIVS.

Mobilization that reaches beyond institutions

The mobilization around Highway 20 now extends well beyond the institutional sphere. The petition led by the citizens' committee Pour une vraie 20 has gathered several thousand signatures, a testament to how important this issue is to the public.

"L'inachevée has weighed heavily on our communities for many generations. Our petition gathered 16,222 names, voices calling for the same thing: finish Highway 20! Optimizing Highway 20 is not the business of one party, but of a government. We will be there after the election to remind the next government of this commitment," said Me Pierre Séguin, of the citizens' committee Pour une vraie 20.

A non-partisan approach

The partners of the L'inachevée campaign reiterate that their approach is institutional and non-partisan. The request is addressed to all political parties and to the next government, whatever it may be.

Ahead of the October 5, 2026 election, the public and businesses are invited to reach out to the candidates in their riding, to share the campaign and to display their support. Mobilization tools -- including posters and a template email addressed to party leaders -- will also be rolled out over the coming weeks.

To learn more and get involved: www.autoroute20.ca

About the L'inachevée campaign

L'inachevée (The Unfinished One) is a non-partisan regional mobilization campaign led jointly by the MRC de Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Développement Vaudreuil-Soulanges, the Chambre de commerce et d'industrie de Vaudreuil-Soulanges and the citizens' committee Pour une vraie 20. After more than 60 years of waiting, elected officials, business leaders and citizens are uniting their voices to call for the optimization of Highway 20 and the inclusion of the project in the next Québec Infrastructure Plan. The initiative is supported by a unanimous resolution of the MRC and its 23 municipalities, by an independent analysis of the impacts of the status quo, by the opportunity study of Québec's Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, and by a strong citizen mobilization.

SOURCE Développement Vaudreuil-Soulanges

Media contact: Audrey Bourgon Touchette, Director, Communications and Tourism Promotion, Développement Vaudreuil-Soulanges, [email protected] | 450 424-2262, ext. 3235