About 280,000 vehicles use the Turcot interchange every day, making it the busiest in Quebec. (CBC)

Community groups are applauding Quebec's Environmental Assessment Board for ordering the province back to the drawing board with its $1.5-billion plan to rebuild Montreal’s crumbling Turcot interchange.

The Transport Ministry has to address issues of sustainable development and the concerns of citizens, the board said in a 173-page report made public Tuesday.

The board criticized plans to demolish 166 homes and called on the government to re-work the project in collaboration with the city to avoid as many expropriations as possible.

Under the current plan, 34 commercial buildings will also be bought out and a school will be closed.

To improve the integration of public transit into the project, the board wants the government to update its management plan for the region, which dates back to 2000.

Some 280,000 vehicles travel the Turcot interchange daily. The towering concrete structure connects Montreal's Ville-Marie Expressway (720), the Decarie Autoroute (15) and Highway 20.

The board suggested part of Highway 15 be buried — reducing its effect as a barrier between communities and allowing further development of the Turcot yard with more room for greenspace.

Groups opposed to plan

Last spring, more than 90 groups presented their views at public hearings on the project, with many expressing concerns about the design.

On Tuesday, groups including Mobilization Turcot welcomed the board's report.

"We're very happy with today's report and that they are now going to take into consideration all the people that live around the Turcot and find a way to keep them in the area," said spokesperson Geneviève Locas.

But the head of Montreal's Regional Council on the Environment, André Porlier, said he wished the Environmental Assessment Board, known as BAPE, had gone further.

"We are disappointed the BAPE is not taking a stance in favour of a reduction of car traffic and more public transit," Porlier said.

Transport Minister Julie Boulet said she would study the report. The ministry is already working to address some of the recommendations, she said.

The Environmental Assessment Board held seven public hearings on the project and received 105 written submissions.