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'Autoroute 73' (or 'A-73', also called 'Autoroute Robert-Cliche' south of Quebec City and 'Autoroute Laurentienne' to the north) is an important Autoroute in east-central Quebec, Canada. A-73 provides an important freeway connection to areas to the north and south of Quebec City, starting in the Beauce region and (currently) ending in the Laurentian Mountains north of Quebec City. Future extensions will take it farther north and south, into the Saguenay region and possibly to near the Maine border. Including concurrencies, A-73 is currently 106 km (66 miles) long.

A-73 currently begins at Route 276 in Saint-Joseph-de-Beauce as a two-lane freeway. It widens to a 4-lane freeway after 22 km (14 miles) in Sainte-Marie. Just after crossing A-20 in Lévis, A-73 crosses the Pierre Laporte Bridge (the longest suspension bridge in Canada) into Quebec City. By 2007, A-73 is expected to continue further south into Beauceville and further extensions to Saint-Georges are expected to follow. [1]
For 10 km (6 miles) through Quebec City, A-73 overlaps A-40, partially using A-73 exit numbers and partially using A-40 numbers. The routes split at a cloverleaf interchange, where A-73 joins the ''Autoroute Laurentienne'' (which in itself continues into downtown Quebec City, signed as Route 175 only but secretly known as Autoroute 973).
Heading north, A-73 continues as a multilane freeway north to Stoneham where it currently transitions into a brief two-lane freeway before converting to a 2-lane conventional highway as Route 175. However, extensions of A-73 are planned and under construction; it will be a 4-lane freeway or at-grade expressway all the way north to Saguenay. [2] It is unclear whether the long northern extension will be signed as A-73 or Route 175. It is expected to be completed to north of Stoneham by 2007 and Saguenay by 2011.
Due to the alignment change and the fact that both sections continue for a short distance as Autoroutes, some have suggested that the Laurentienne section of A-73 (along with unsigned A-973) be given a new designation, the most common (and most logical due to the fact it would be replacing Route 175) suggestion is 'Autoroute 75'. It is unlikely that it will take place however.
The designation Autoroute Robert-Cliche is named after a Quebec provincial New Democratic Party leader of the early 1960s. Robert Cliche also led an inquiry into Quebec trade union rights in 1974. A foundation in his name is dedicated to preserving the heritage of the Beauce region through which A-73 travels.
The Autoroute Laurentienne name is derived from the Laurentian Mountains region north of Quebec City, through which the northern extension of A-73 is planned.

Contents

Interchanges from South to North

Resources

Interchanges from South to North

Municipality	Exit Number	Intersecting Roads
Future southern extension
Saint-Georges	43 ★	127e Rue Route 204 (future interchange)
Saint-Georges	48 ★	74e Rue (future interchange)
Notre-Dame-des-Pins	53 ★	20e Rue (future interchange)
Beauceville	61 ★	Chemin du Golf (interchange under construction)
Autoroute Robert-Cliche, south of Quebec City
Saint-Joseph-de-Beauce	72	Route Lac-Vachon Route 276) (current A-73 terminus)
Saints-Anges - Vallée-Jonction Boundary	81	Route Érables Route 112)
Sainte-Marie	91	Route Carter
Sainte-Marie	95	Route Cameron
Scott	101	Route Président-Kennedy Route 173
Saint-Isidore	108	Route Vieux-Moulin
Saint-Lambert-de-Lauzon	115	Rue du Pont Route 218
Lévis	123	Avenue St-Augustin Route 175
Lévis	124	Chemin St-Gregoire
Lévis	128	Route Beaulieu
Lévis	130	Avenue Joseph-Hudon
Lévis	131	Autoroute 20
Quebec City	132	Boulevard Champlain (unsigned Route 136)
Quebec City	133	Chemin St-Louis (northbound only)
Quebec City	134	Autoroute 540 (Autoroute Duplessis) / Boulevard Laurier ( Route 175)
Quebec City	136	Boulevard Hochelaga
Quebec City	137	Chemin des Quatre-Bourgeois
Quebec City	138	Avenue Dalquier (northbound) / Avenue d'Entremont (southbound)
Quebec City	139	Autoroute 40 West / Ville de Québec Autoroute 440 (Autoroute Charest)
Quebec City	140	Rue Einstein
Quebec City	141	Boulevard Wilfrid-Hamel Route 138)
Quebec City	142	Autoroute 573 (Autoroute Henri-IV)
Autoroute Henri-IV, concurrency with Autoroute 40
Quebec City	308 (143 ★ )	Boulevard de l'Ormiere Route 371
Quebec City	310 (145 ★ )	Rue Letourneau / Rue Arnaud
Quebec City	311 (146 ★ )	Autoroute 740 (Autoroute du Vallon)
Quebec City	312 (147 ★ )	Boulevard Pierre-Bertrand Route 358)
Autoroute Laurentienne, north of Quebec City
Quebec City	148	Autoroute 40 East / Route 175 (unsigned Autoroute 973)
Quebec City	149	Boulevard de l'Atrium / Boulevard Lebourgneuf
Quebec City	150	Boulevard St-Joseph / 80e Rue Route 369
Quebec City	151	Boulevard Jean-Talon
Quebec City	154	Rue des Érables / Rue de la Faune
Quebec City	155	Rue Georges-Muir
Quebec City	156	Avenue Notre-Dame (northbound only)
Quebec City	157	Boulevard du Lac
Quebec City	158	Rue de la Polyvalente (northbound only)
Quebec City	159	Boulevard Talbot
Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury	167	Rue Murphy Route 371
Future northern extension
Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury	173 ★	1ere Avenue / Rue St-Edmond (future interchange)
Stoneham-et-Tewkesbury	181 ★	Boulevard Talbot / Jacques-Cartier Park access (future interchange)

★
★ Exit number not signed (or future interchange), based on kilometre post

★ On the east-west portion of the A-40 concurrency, the first number is the posted A-40 exit number, followed by the unposted A-73 kilometre post in brackets.

Resources

★ A-73 at Exitlists.com

★ A-73 at Quebec Autoroutes

★ A-73 extension unofficial homepage