'It's really bad': Local businesses lament Eardley-Masham Road staying closed until fall

A keyroadway across Gatineau Park that has been closed for more thanthree months due to spring floodingwill stay that way until later this fall, Quebec's Transport Ministry (MTQ) told CBC.

The Eardley-Masham Road normally connects Highway 148, south of the park, to Highway 366, north of it, in about15 to 20 minutes.

It's when these roads are closed that we realize how useful they are.-Guillaume Lamoureux, mayor of La Pche

Its closure has forced residents who wish to drive between Pontiac andthe village of Sainte-Ccile-de-Masham, in La Pche, to take a detourroughlytwo to four times as long.

La PcheMayor Guillaume Lamoureux said the MTQinitially told him the road would be fixed this summer.

"It's when these roads are closed that we realize how useful they are, how much we use them," he said. "It's just time that people lose every day, having to go around either through Lac-des-Loups or all the way through Chelsea, and back."

Lamoureux is now worried about the next school yearsince some high school students commute from Pontiacto study in La Pche.

Planning takes time, MTQ says

MTQ spokesperson Rosalie Faubertacknowledged that some residents might be frustrated by the prolonged closure, but said that repairs take time to plan.

Faubert said two culverts were destroyed and that several sections of the road will have to be rebuilt between Bradley Roadin the south and Sincennes Road in the north.

She said a call for tenders should be put out in the coming weeks and repairs should be completed this fall. Once started, construction shouldn't take too long.

"It's still too early to give a timelinesince drawings and specifications have yet to be completed," Faubert said.

Road closure hurting businesses

Jacques Junior Rainville is a long-time employee of Chez Jack, a food truck serving French fries, hamburgers and the like in Pontiac. The business is at the junction of Highway 148 and Eardley-Masham Road.

He saidbusiness has been slower this summer and he believes it has something to do with the prolonged closure.

"It's very bad ... Business has been cut almost in half," Rainvillesaid, adding that theseason also started a bit later due to spring flooding.

Just across the street, Richard Lacasse also saw a drop in business. His restaurantAu coin du camionneurhad lotsof clients from Masham, north of GatineauPark.

"I would say I lose at least 10 to 15 clients per day," he said in a French-language interview. "I was supposed to have more clients during the summer."

Western Quebec road to remain closed into the fall

5 years ago

Duration 0:51

The Eardley-Masham Road, which connects La Pche to the Pontiac, Que., was damaged during this spring's flooding. La Pche Mayor Guillaume Lamoureux said the road was supposed to reopen by September but he is now being told work won't begin until the fall.