Commuters got their first traffic stress relief Monday morning when the access ramp from the Highway 15 North to the 20 West opened.

It is the first ramp to open this year and will be followed by one connecting Decarie South to Highway 20 West.

Drivers will now no longer have to detour off the 15 via a temporary bridge heading east before going west on the 20.

The news should continue to improve for the around 300,000 motorists that use the interchange every day.

KPH Turcot, the consortium building the interchange, said last week that three out of four lanes for westbound drivers coming out of the Ville Marie Tunnel heading for the Turcot will soon open, and the De la Verendrye exit from Highway 15 South will also reopen in the fall.