158-510: King's Highway 8 , commonly referred to as Highway 8 , is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario . The 159.7-kilometre (99.2 mi) route travels from Highway 21 in Goderich , on the shores of Lake Huron , to Highway 5 in the outskirts of Hamilton near Lake Ontario . Before the 1970s, it continued east through Hamilton and along the edge of
316-540: A portage between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. The Iroquois Trail was utilised by famous historical figures, including John Graves Simcoe in 1793 on his voyage to Detroit, as well as during the War of 1812 . It was widened to accommodate wagon traffic by 1785. Between approximately 1800 and 1820, large numbers of German and Dutch settlers from Pennsylvania travelled west across the Niagara Peninsula and onward to
474-600: A roundabout as the ideal replacement, with traffic signals at the two intersections with Westover Road. Construction began in the spring of 2012, and the C$ 6.3 million roundabout was opened on September 25, 2012. The interchange between the Freeport Diversion and Highway 401 is incomplete, providing access only between eastbound Highway 8 and eastbound Highway 401, and between westbound Highway 401 and westbound Highway 8. Although
632-654: A species at risk in Canada. Both projects were completed and opened, except for one westbound lane over the Grand River, in November 2011; the fourth westbound lane was opened the following year. An operational and safety review of the three intersections at Peters Corners near Hamilton was undertaken in February 2001. Studies, including an environmental assessment were conducted between 2004 and 2009, and settled upon
790-442: A 1961 traffic study. By then, the opening of Highway 401 was attracting business away from the rapidly growing twin cities. Land was gradually purchased over the intervening years and picked up considerably when plans for the expressway system were first raised in late 1962. The provincial government reached a funding arrangement with Kitchener and Waterloo to cover 75% of the expected C$ 22 million cost, and officially announced
948-469: A Canadian corporation. Following the successful IPO, CN has recorded impressive gains in its stock price, largely through an aggressive network rationalization and purchase of newer more fuel-efficient locomotives. Numerous branch lines were shed in the late 1990s across Canada, resulting in dozens of independent short line railway companies being established to operate former CN track that had been considered marginal. This network rationalization resulted in
1106-690: A blue-plate tourist service, the Rocky Mountaineer , with fares well over double what the BCR coach fares had been. CN also announced in October 2003 an agreement to purchase Great Lakes Transportation (GLT), a holding company owned by Blackstone Group for US$ 380 million. GLT was the owner of Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad , Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range Railway (DM&I), and the Pittsburgh & Conneaut Dock Company. The key instigator for
1264-511: A business of consulting for cities to develop one-way street plans. Smith proposed a complete reorganisation of the downtown area, including converting Main Street – which Highway 8 followed through the city – to an eastbound one-way. King Street served the opposing direction in the one-way pairing . The switch from two-way to one-way traffic took place on October 28, 1956. It immediately drew condemnation from local businesses, which saw
1422-605: A completely new alignment, and featured interchanges at nearly all crossroads. Construction of an extension around Barrie began in 1950, and the completed freeway was opened on July 1, 1952. The expressway between Highland Creek and Oshawa was also completed in this period, and opened as far as Ritson Road in December 1947, becoming the progenitor to Highway 401. Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company ( French : Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada ) ( reporting mark CN )
1580-414: A core east–west freight railway stretching from Halifax to Chicago and Toronto to Vancouver and Prince Rupert . The railway also operated trains from Winnipeg to Chicago using trackage rights for part of the route south of Duluth. In addition to the rationalization in Canada, the company also expanded in a strategic north–south direction in the central United States . In 1998, in an era of mergers in
1738-654: A detailed design for two additional ramps to provide access to and from the west to Highway 8 was prepared in 2010, there is no schedule or funding as of 2021 for this work. The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 8, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario . Highway 8 is maintained under a Connecting Link agreement within Goderich, Clinton, Seaforth, Mitchell, and Stratford. Ontario Provincial Highway Network The Ontario Provincial Highway Network consists of all
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#17328013069831896-627: A great deal of public and political attention. Canada was one of many nations to engage in railway nationalization in order to safeguard critical transportation infrastructure during the First World War . In the early 20th century, many governments were taking a more interventionist role in the economy, foreshadowing the influence of economists like John Maynard Keynes . This political trend, combined with broader geo-political events, made nationalization an appealing choice for Canada. The Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 and allied involvement in
2054-410: A house within a year, and resided on the grant for at least five years would receive the title to that land. The government subsequently built over 1,600 kilometres (1,000 mi) of roads over the following 20 years to provide access to these grants, although the roads were often little more than a trail cut through the forest wide enough for a wagon. Like the lands to the south, statute labour
2212-412: A joint committee from a shortlist of 12 publicly-submitted names. The reconstruction of King Street was completed and opened in November 1967. Construction began several months later in October on a C$ 3.6 million contract to build a 2.9-kilometre (1.8 mi) segment of the parkway from King Street to west of Homer Watson Boulevard. This section, which was built along the alignment of Henry Strum Boulevard,
2370-741: A name instead; these are the Central Ontario Route , Georgian Bay Route , Lake Superior Route , Northern Ontario Route and Ottawa Valley Route . Several portions of the King's Highway are designated as part of the Trans-Canada Highway system within Ontario, with the TCH having a main route and several branches, often only following sections of any given provincial highway. They are: In addition to these classes of highways,
2528-671: A network of east–west and north–south roads between the Ottawa Valley and Georgian Bay . This area was known as the Ottawa–Huron Tract . In 1847, an exploration survey was carried out by Robert Bell to lay out the lines that would become the Opeongo, Hastings, and Addington colonization roads . The Public Lands Act, passed in 1853, permitted the granting of land to settlers who were at least 18. Those settlers who cleared at least 12 acres (4.9 ha) within four years, built
2686-469: A new 3.3-kilometre (2.1 mi) freeway link between the Freeport Diversion and Highway 401, which was known as Highway 8 New during construction. Highway 8 New was completed by 1988, and received the non-public designation Highway 7187, since the Highway 8 designation continued along King Street East and Shantz Hill Road towards Cambridge. However, in 2008, Highway 8
2844-613: A north–south NAFTA railway (in reference to the North American Free Trade Agreement ). CN was then feeding Canadian raw material exports into the U.S. heartland and beyond to Mexico through a strategic alliance with Kansas City Southern Railway (KCS). In 1999, CN and BNSF Railway , the second largest rail system in the U.S., announced their intent to merge, forming a new corporate entity North American Railways , headquartered in Montreal to conform to
3002-528: A possible merger of the two companies. This was later rejected by the Government of Canada, whereupon CPR offered to purchase outright all of CN's lines from Ontario to Nova Scotia, while an unidentified U.S. railroad (rumoured to have been Burlington Northern Railroad ) would purchase CN's lines in western Canada. This too was rejected. In 1995, the entire company including its U.S. subsidiaries reverted to using CN exclusively. The CN Commercialization Act
3160-516: A provincial highway system. The initial system, between Windsor and Quebec , was bookended by branches to Niagara and Ottawa . In 1919, the federal government passed the Canada Highways Act , which provided $ 20,000,000 to provinces under the condition that they establish an official highway network; up to 40% of construction costs would be subsidized. The first network plan was approved on February 26, 1920. At this time, Campbell
3318-542: A provincial highway system. The initial system, between Windsor and Quebec , was bookended by branches to Niagara and Ottawa . The branch to Niagara would become the first provincial highway connection to the United States, and later become the easternmost portion of Highway 8. The Hamilton–Queenston Highway was assumed as part of "The Provincial Highway" in August 1918. In 1919, the federal government passed
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#17328013069833476-642: A recession in the 1990s resulted in the Mike Harris provincial government forming the Who Does What? committee to determine cost-cutting measures in order to balance the budget after a deficit incurred by former premier Bob Rae . It was determined that many Ontario highways no longer served long-distance traffic movement and should therefore be maintained by local or regional levels of government. The MTO consequently transferred many highways to lower levels of government in 1997 and 1998, which resulted in
3634-508: A resource road, allowing for vehicles otherwise prohibited from public roads. Industrial roads are privately owned routes with which the MTO has entered an agreement to improve or allow public access, and are not considered part of the provincial highway network. The 407 ETR is likewise not considered part of the provincial highway network. While it is still subject to the rules set forth by the HTA, it
3792-549: A rural two-lane highway running roughly parallel and south of the Maitland River , passing through farmland outside of the many small communities it serves. At Holmesville , the river moves northwards while the highway continues southeast, now parallel to and north of the Goderich–Exeter Railway . Soon after, it passes through Clinton, where it intersects the northern terminus of Highway 4 . Highway 8
3950-491: A significant reduction in customers. A special council meeting to discuss the matter was held on July 15, 1957, which drew a large public audience. At it, alderman Ramsey Evans, a member of the committee that had first suggested the one-way conversion, sought to undo it. The motion was defeated, and Main Street and King Street remain one-way streets. In the fall of 1961, the Department of Highways began construction of
4108-488: A sleigh or carriage to pass. He completed the first 101 kilometres (63 mi) to Port Hope by December. The government ultimately decided that his road was unacceptable, and reportedly paid him less than owed. Portions of Danforth's road were later incorporated into Highway 2 , as well as several local roads in Scarborough . The majority of settlers up to this point were United Empire Loyalists — settlers of
4266-497: A statute labour system that required landowners to make improvements in lieu of taxes. Private companies constructed corduroy and later plank roads and charged tolls in the second half of the 19th century. The rising popularity of the bicycle led to the formation of the Ontario Good Roads Association, which advocated for the improvement of roads and recreation as the automobile rose to prominence. By
4424-883: A stone road circa 1836. Over the years the route was known by various names, including the Waterloo Road, the Galt Road, the Old Dutch Road, the Beverly Road, and most often the Dundas and Hamilton Stone Road. Settlement beyond Waterloo was accomplished by the Canada Company , which acquired the Huron Tract in 1826. In order to implement the grand settlement plan, a trail was surveyed by Mahlon Burwell and William Dunlop from Guelph to Lake Huron at
4582-481: Is Highway 537 in Greater Sudbury . They generally serve to connect remote communities to the King's Highway, or to interconnect the King's Highway. A few secondary highways remain gravel -surfaced, although most have been paved. The speed limit on nearly all of these routes is 80 km/h (50 mph), although Highway 655 is posted at 90 km/h (55 mph). The Secondary Highway system
4740-677: Is 80 km/h (50 mph), although design standards generally prevent such. Unlike other roads in the Provincial Highway Network, the MTO is not responsible for winter maintenance nor liable for damage incurred as a result of using these routes. The MTO introduced the Tertiary Road system in 1962. With the exception of Highway 802 , none end in settlements. The Trans-Canada Highway (TCH) forms several major routes across Canada. The provincial governments are entirely responsible for signage and maintenance of
4898-774: Is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec , which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States . CN is Canada's largest railway, in terms of both revenue and the physical size of its rail network, spanning Canada from the Atlantic coast in Nova Scotia to the Pacific coast in British Columbia across approximately 20,000 route miles (32,000 km) of track. In
Ontario Highway 8 - Misplaced Pages Continue
5056-569: Is completely straight for approximately 50 kilometres (31 mi) between Clinton and Stratford. After bisecting Seaforth , the highway enters Perth County and passes through the communities of Dublin , Mitchell (where it intersects Highway 23 ) and Sebringville . Entering Stratford as Huron Street, Highway 8 widens to four lanes. It crosses the Avon River , then turns east onto Ontario Street before encountering Highway 7 at Erie Street. The two routes become concurrent for
5214-438: Is nearly 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) long, while the shortest is less than a kilometre. Some roads are unsigned highways , lacking signage to indicate their maintenance by the MTO; these may be remnants of highways that are still under provincial control whose designations were decommissioned , roadway segments left over from realignment projects, or proposed highway corridors. Predecessors to today's modern highways include
5372-653: Is otherwise governed independently under the legislation of the Highway 407 Act. Speed limits on provincial highways are legislated by sections of the road, and vary between 50 km/h (30 mph) and 110 km/h (70 mph). Freeways, including the 400-series highways, are generally signed at 100 km/h (60 mph), although sections exist that are signed lower. Three segments of freeway are part of an ongoing pilot project to test speed limits of 110 km/h in rural areas that are not subject to congestion. A fourth segment, located in Northern Ontario ,
5530-605: The CN Commercialization Act of 1995. The merger announcement by CN's Paul Tellier and BNSF's Robert Krebs was greeted with skepticism by the U.S. government's Surface Transportation Board (STB), and protested by other major North American rail companies, namely CPR and Union Pacific Railroad (UP). Rail customers also denounced the proposed merger, following the confusion and poor service sustained in southeastern Texas in 1998 following UP's purchase of Southern Pacific Railroad two years earlier. In response to
5688-550: The Canada Highways Act , which provided C$ 20,000,000 to provinces under the condition that they establish an official highway network; up to 40% of construction costs would be subsidized. The first network plan was approved on February 26, 1920, and included the Queenston Road. Most of the remainder of what would become Highway 8 – from Goderich to Hamilton – was assumed by the department throughout July 1920. On October 13, several roads were taken over by
5846-591: The Connecticut River valley from Quebec to Long Island Sound ; and the Berlin subdivision to Portland, Maine , known informally as the Grand Trunk Eastern , sold to a short-line operator in 1989. In 1992, a new management team led by ex-federal government bureaucrats, Paul Tellier and Michael Sabia , started preparing CN for privatization by emphasizing increased productivity. This
6004-469: The Grand River at its midpoint, followed by a partial interchange with King Street East that provides access to Highway 401 westbound to London. The expressway narrows to six lanes and later to four lanes at Sportsworld Drive. It merges to eastbound Highway 401 and from westbound 401. The MTO maintains approximately 670 metres (2,198.2 ft) of King Street and Shantz Hill Road at
6162-724: The Niagara Escarpment to the American border at the Whirlpool Bridge in Niagara Falls . However, the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) replaced the role of Highway 8 between those two cities, and the highway was subsequently transferred from the province to the newly formed Regional Municipality of Niagara in 1970. In 1998, the remaining portion east of Peters Corners was transferred to
6320-570: The Nith River before becoming a divided four-lane freeway near Baden . At Trussler Road, the combined Highway 7/8 enters the city of Kitchener, where it is known as the Conestoga Parkway . The Conestoga Parkway runs through Kitchener, widening to a six-lane freeway near Fischer Hallman Road. At King Street in the city's centre, Highway 8 splits off southeastward at an interchange, while Highway 7 continues along
6478-585: The Russian Revolution seemed to validate the continuing process. The need for a viable rail system was paramount in a time of civil unrest and foreign military action. Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad The B&LE was acquired with the purchase of Great Lakes Transportation and the DM&;IR. British Columbia Railway In 2003, BCOL sold to Canadian National and leased the railroad to CN for 60 years. Central Vermont Railway Central Vermont
Ontario Highway 8 - Misplaced Pages Continue
6636-471: The Thirteen Colonies loyal to Britain who fled north to the new colony. These pioneers endured starting anew in untamed wilderness, with little provisions beyond what they could carry. Many were strategically placed along Yonge Street and Dundas Street, and given the duty of clearing half the width of a road along the front of their property lot. Settlers were responsible for the upkeep, and often
6794-542: The half cloverleaf interchange that would serve the western and northern legs of the expressway system. In the mid-to-late 1960s, Highway 8 was redirected along Fairway Road, Mill Street (now Vanier Drive) and a new road named Henry Sturm Boulevard that travelled east from Ottawa Street and Highland Road to Mill Street. The expressway was renamed the Conestoga Parkway in January 1967, after being chosen by
6952-476: The rules of the road . The Public Transportation and Highway Improvement Act (PTHIA) sets forth the regulations concerning roads that are under the authority of the Province of Ontario. The act distinguishes and sets out the applicability of the HTA to provincial highways, which are designated as part of The King's Highway (primary), a secondary highway, or a tertiary road. Tertiary roads may also be designated as
7110-517: The shape of a shield , topped by a St Edward's Crown . In other cases, particularly when approaching the junction of another highway, a square crown marker is used, featuring the route number within an outline of the St Edward's Crown, paired with an arrow plate; exit signs on freeways and at major junctions also use this crown symbol. For secondary highways, the route number is within an outline of an isosceles trapezoid , while tertiary roads place
7268-470: The 500s and 600s, with existing highways numbered between 502 and 673. Tertiary roads are remote routes entirely within Northern Ontario that provide access to resources (e.g. mining and forestry). Tertiary roads are numbered in the 800s, with the five existing highways numbered between 802 and 811. Most of these roads are gravel-surfaced and of low-standard. The speed limit on these routes
7426-614: The Cambridge Area Transportation Study, released in June 1992. It recommended construction of a C$ 54.5 million bypass of Highway 8 around the west side of Cambridge, from Highway 401 to south of the city. The proposal faced public backlash due to the cost as well as environmental concerns of crossing the Grand River and five environmentally sensitive areas. Following the completion of an environmental assessment in 1984, construction began by 1985 on
7584-600: The Conestoga Parkway from four to six lanes between Courtland Avenue and King Street. It was completed, along with widening of the parkway between King Street and Frederick Street, in July 2000. The expansion of Highway 8 from four lanes to eight lanes between the Conestoga Parkway and Fergus Avenue was originally scheduled to begin in 2001, but was delayed as businesses along Weber Street fought expropriation . Construction instead began in April 2002, which involved shifting one of
7742-438: The Conestoga Parkway. Traffic on Highway 8 heading northwest can continue under the Conestoga Parkway onto King Street into downtown Kitchener. Between the Conestoga Parkway and Highway 401, Highway 8 follows an eight-lane freeway known as the Freeport Diversion or Highway 8 Expressway. The expressway initially travels southeast, passing under Franklin Street before swerving slightly south. It crosses over
7900-479: The Freeport Diversion, providing a new divided highway crossing of the Grand River. The diversion, connecting with King Street south of the Grand River and at Fergus Street, was completed in 1963. Although the concept of a ring road around Kitchener and Waterloo originated from the Kitchener-Waterloo and Suburban Planning Board in 1948, actual consideration was not given to it until it was recommended by
8058-582: The Freeport Diversion, was also transferred on that day to the Regional Municipality of Waterloo. In the early 1990s, the provincial government announced plans to widen the Conestoga Parkway and Freeport Diversion, as well as to improve the interchange between the two. The project was broken into several phases, and included rebuilding the Ottawa Street and Franklin Street overpasses. Construction began in August or September 1998 to widen
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#17328013069838216-670: The Harbour or from remaining within it. ... I have good Information that a Road is very easy to be made to communicate with those Waters which fall into Lake Huron. ... In regard to Lake Huron, tho' it is not so immediate an object of Attention, yet I consider it ultimately of the most extensive and serious Magnitude. John Graves Simcoe John Graves Simcoe , the first Lieutenant Governor of Upper Canada , landed at Niagara on July 26, 1792, after overwintering in Quebec City , from England and set forth to colonize
8374-462: The Highway 401 interchange as an unsigned portion of Highway 8. Within Cambridge, the route continues as Waterloo Regional Road 8 along Shantz Hill Road, Fountain Street, King Street, Coronation Boulevard, and Dundas Street. Highway 8 resumes at Branchton Road, where it exits urban Cambridge into farmland travelling southeast. After approximately 3 kilometres (1.9 mi),
8532-513: The King's Highway" or "the King's Highway known as n ". However, in common parlance they are simply referred to as "Highway n ". Ontario highways rank second safest in North America for fatality rates, with 0.55 fatalities per 10000 licensed drivers in 2019. The phrase "King's Highway" is used regardless of the gender of the monarch. The 400-series highways and the QEW form the backbone of
8690-414: The King's Highway, with other routes numbered from 2 to 148. The Ministry of Transportation never designated a Highway 1. Some highway numbers are suffixed with a letter A ("alternate route"), B ("business route"), or N ("new route"). In the past, there have also been routes with C and S ("scenic route") suffixes. The entire King's Highway network is fully paved. The term "the King's Highway"
8848-492: The Kitchener–Waterloo Expressway on May 21, 1964. The province eventually took over authority for the entire project in August 1965. Construction of the Kitchener–Waterloo Expressway began in February 1966 with the awarding of a C$ 3 million contract to rebuild 2.7 kilometres (1.7 mi) of King Street into a four lane divided highway from Fairway Road (renamed from Block Line Road) to Doon Road, including
9006-578: The MTO maintains other roads, such as resource roads or industrial roads, that are of strategic importance to the provincial government. These roads are designated with 7000-series numbers for internal inventory purposes, though they are not publicly marked as such. They are often, but not always, former highway segments which were decommissioned as a King's Highway, but remain important as connecting routes to communities or other highways in areas without municipal governance. There were formerly several designated Ontario Tourist Routes that were located throughout
9164-706: The Middle Road , which would become the Queen Elizabeth Way in 1939. In 1937, the DHO merged with the Department of Northern Development , extending the highway network into the Canadian Shield and Northern Ontario . Significant traffic engineering and surveying through the war years , during which construction came to a near standstill, led to the planning and initial construction of controlled-access highways . The 400-series highways were built beginning in
9322-446: The Middle Road and construction began to convert the existing sections to a divided highway. Work also began on Canada's first interchange at Highway 10. The Middle Road was ceremoniously renamed the Queen Elizabeth Way during the 1939 royal tour of Canada , taking its name from Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother , and was completed between Toronto and Niagara Falls on August 26, 1940. Beginning in 1935, McQuesten applied
9480-503: The Montreal commuter trains are now operated by Montreal's EXO . On November 17, 1995, the Government of Canada privatized CN. Over the next decade, the company expanded significantly into the United States, purchasing Illinois Central Railroad and Wisconsin Central Transportation , among others. The excessive construction of railway lines in Canada led to significant financial difficulties striking many of them, in
9638-411: The New Hamburg Diversion with the Conestoga Parkway. It opened on August 13, 1973, bypassing Baden; the former alignment east of New Hamburg is now known as Gingerich Road. During the mid-1970s, proposals for a Highway 8 bypass of Cambridge were floated, but never gained traction. Although the proposal was shelved in 1988, the bypass idea was briefly revived as a result of recommendations in
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#17328013069839796-460: The QEW, which feature yellow text on a reflective blue background. For secondary highways, trailblazers simply add the word "TO" above the route number. Since August 2004, "Highway of Heroes" shields featuring a diagram of a poppy have been posted along Highway 401 between Toronto and CFB Trenton . These were erected to honour fallen Canadian soldiers, whose bodies were repatriated from Afghanistan in funeral convoys along that stretch of
9954-421: The Queenston Stone Road or the Queenston and Grimsby Stone Road), established along an aboriginal trail at the foot of the Niagara Escarpment in the 1780s. When settlers began arriving in the Niagara Peninsula following the American Revolution and the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783, natives were non-existent in the area, the local tribe having been ravaged over a century earlier. Trails crisscrossed
10112-433: The U.S. rail industry, CN bought the Illinois Central Railroad (IC), which connected the already existing lines from Vancouver , British Columbia, to Halifax , Nova Scotia, with a line running from Chicago, Illinois, to New Orleans , Louisiana. This single purchase of IC transformed CN's entire corporate focus from being an east–west uniting presence within Canada (sometimes to the detriment of logical business models) into
10270-436: The US into Upper Canada in July 1794 — would complete the opening of the route to Bond Lake by the end of 1794. The remainder to Holland Landing was opened by the Rangers, under the supervision of Augustus Jones, between December 28, 1795, and February 16, 1796. In 1798, Asa Danforth was hired by the government of Upper Canada to build a road to the Trent River , in what in now Trenton , by July 1 of
10428-404: The Waterloo area. A trail cut from Hamilton to the Grand River, at Galt, in 1798 or 1799, was gradually widened to be fit for wagons by 1819. While Niagara-on-the-Lake served as the initial focal point of settlement into southwestern Ontario, Hamilton emerged in 1816 at the head of Lake Ontario, and immediately became the new hub for settlers. The route between Hamilton and Waterloo was improved to
10586-444: The approach to roads and roadbuilding in the first years of the 20th century. In 1900, the provincial Instructor in Roadmaking was renamed as the Commissioner of Public Highways in 1900, as well as the Deputy Minister in the new Department of Public Works in 1905. The first legislation on driving was introduced in 1903, and included the first speed limits (15 miles per hour (24 km/h)). The first license plates were created that year,
10744-404: The arrival of news in May of France's declaration of war against Britain . Having reformed the Queen's Rangers , whom he fought alongside during the American War, Simcoe set out to establish military roads to connect his new capital with the Upper Great Lakes and other strategic points. The first road he ordered built was Dundas Street, from the head of Lake Ontario near present-day Dundas to
10902-516: The building of roads in this period, with each male over 21 years of age required to perform three or more days of statute labour per year, based on the value of their land. The intention was for settlers throughout the length of the roads to work on the portion fronting their lot, which was generally twenty chains , or 400 metres (1,300 ft) long. However, many lots were given to absent clergymen and English nobles, resulting in these "roads" being poorly-maintained quagmires of mud. During
11060-464: The city of Hamilton. Between Stratford and Kitchener , Highway 8 is concurrent with Highway 7 . The two highways widen into a four-lane freeway east of New Hamburg , eventually becoming the Conestoga Parkway within Kitchener, where it splits with Highway 7. It follows a short connector freeway – known as the Freeport Diversion , King Street Bypass , or Highway 8 expressway – south to Highway 401 . The route continues as
11218-432: The community of Baden . The original route – following Huron Street, Waterloo Street, and Snyder's Street West – met the new bypass at Gingerich Road east of Baden. Farther east, two bypasses were constructed around the villages of Rockton and Sheffield beginning in 1958 that opened the following year. Within Hamilton, growing congestion in the 1950s led the city to hire American traffic engineer Wilbur Smith , who had made
11376-629: The concept of a dual-highway to several projects along Highway 2, including along Kingston Road in Scarborough Township. When widening in Scarborough reached the Highland Creek ravine in 1936, the Department of Highways began construction on a new bridge over the large valley, bypassing the former alignment around West Hill . From here the highway was constructed on a new alignment to Oshawa, avoiding construction on
11534-584: The congested Highway 2. As grading and bridge construction neared completion on the new highway between West Hill and Oshawa in September 1939, World War II broke out and gradually tax revenues were re-allocated from highway construction to the war effort. As the war came to a close, planning began in 1945 on the Toronto–Barrie Highway to ease the congestion on the parallel routes of Highway 11 and Highway 27 . The highway followed
11692-649: The deal was the fact that since the Wisconsin Central purchase, CN was required to use DM&I trackage rights for a short 18 km (11 mi) "gap" near Duluth, Minnesota , on the route between Chicago and Winnipeg. To purchase this short section, CN was told by GLT it would have to purchase the entire company. Also included in GLT's portfolio were eight Great Lakes vessels for transporting bulk commodities such as coal and iron ore as well as various port facilities. Following Surface Transportation Board approval for
11850-457: The early 1800s, the government of Upper Canada appropriated settlers to various lots which had been surveyed along the lake shores of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario . The townships established along these fronts contained generally fertile land composed of glacial till and clay-rich loam . As these townships filled up, business opportunities presented themselves for investors to purchase native lands and open them to settlement. The Canada Company
12008-417: The early 20th century, the province had taken interest in road improvement and began funding it through counties. The increasing adoption of the automobile resulted in the formation of the Department of Public Highways of Ontario (DPHO) in 1916. The passing of the Canada Highways Act in 1919 resulted in the establishment of a provincial network of highways. The DPHO assigned internal highway numbers to roads in
12166-544: The early years of the 21st century, although several major infrastructure projects including the Herb Gray Parkway and expansion of Highway 69 have proceeded. Recent construction has included the controversial Bradford Bypass and Highway 413 . In Ontario, all public roads are legally considered highways under the Highway Traffic Act (HTA), which sets forth regulations for traffic, or
12324-440: The entire province. However, beginning in February 1997, Tourism-Oriented Directional Signs (TODS) began to appear on highways. Tourist Routes no longer appeared on maps after 1998. Prior to the arrival of Europeans in the 17th century, transportation across what became Ontario was generally via the thousands of lakes and rivers. Short trails existed between bodies of water, known as a portage or carrying place, as well as along
12482-442: The first concrete road in Ontario. The highway became the favourite drive of many motorists, and it quickly became a tradition for many families to drive it every Sunday. Roads and highways in Ontario were given their first serious consideration by the provincial government when the Department of Public Highways (DPHO), predecessor to the modern Ministry of Transportation of Ontario , was established on January 17, 1916. Until then,
12640-566: The first highway patrol established in 1907, licences for chauffeurs in 1909 (regular drivers did not require a licence until 1927), and safety requirements such as headlights. These laws culminated in the creation of the Highway Traffic Act in 1923. Roadbuilding advanced considerably, with the most notable project of the period being the Toronto–Hamilton Highway, the first paved intercity road in Ontario. The highway
12798-460: The following year. He began at the Don River , where Queen Street crosses it today, on June 5 of that year, and proceeded east. Danforth was paid $ 90 per mile to cut a road 10 metres (33 ft) wide, of which the middle half was cut to the level of the ground. He was also to build 5.0-metre (16.5 ft)-wide causeways "wherever necessary" and ensure that slopes were gradual enough for
12956-489: The foot trails and portages used by indigenous peoples in the time before European settlement. Shortly after the creation of the Province of Upper Canada in 1791, the new government under John Graves Simcoe built overland military roads to supplement water-based transportation, including Yonge Street and Dundas Street . At the time, road construction was under the control of the township and county governments. Local township roads were financed and constructed through
13114-563: The forks of the Thames River in present-day London . His Rangers began work on this route on September 10, 1793. Between September 25 and October 14, Simcoe travelled with native guides to Penetanguishene and back. Following the advice of an Ojibwa named Old Sail, the return voyage followed the east branch of the Holland River and thence south to Toronto (known as York from 1793 to 1834); this would become
13272-598: The government. Primarily a freight railway, CN also operated passenger services until 1978, when they were assumed by Via Rail . The only passenger services run by CN after 1978 were several mixed trains (freight and passenger) in Newfoundland , and several commuter trains both on CN's electrified routes and towards the South Shore in the Montreal area (the latter lasted without any public subsidy until 1986). The Newfoundland mixed trains lasted until 1988, while
13430-453: The highway between Hamilton and Niagara Falls, as well as the remaining gaps between Kitchener and Hamilton, were paved the following year. Work was completed between Shakespeare and New Hamburg, as well as on the gaps between Petersburg and Kitchener in 1924. In 1925, paving between Mitchell and Sebringville was completed. At this time, Highway 8 was paved from Mitchell to New Hamburg, and from Petersburg to Niagara Falls. In 1926, paving
13588-492: The highway network was established in the 1920s. Among these was the Niagara Peninsula Planning Study, released in 1964. It indicated that several highways were no longer provincially significant, and responsibility for them should be transferred to local government. Having largely been supplanted by the Queen Elizabeth Way , opened in the 1940s, the winding route of Highway 8 east of Winona
13746-410: The highway. Ontario has several distinct classes of highways: The King's Highway is the primary highway network of Ontario, and constitutes the majority of the principal inter-urban roadways in the province. As a whole, it is referred to in the singular form as opposed to as a group of its parts (i.e. "the King's Highway", not "the King's Highways"). Individual highways are known as "part of
13904-488: The increasing adoption of the bicycle as a means of transport, and the desire of farmers to get their goods to market quicker, the Ontario Good Roads Association was formed in 1894 by representatives from numerous townships, villages and cities. The Good Roads Movement encouraged education on the building of proper roads, and later equipment to aid in the improvement of roads, as well as lobbying
14062-442: The largest single shareholder of CN stock, owning a 14.2% interest through Cascade Investment and his own Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation . From 1919 to 1978, the railway was known as "Canadian National Railways" (CNR). The Canadian National Railways (CNR) was incorporated on June 6, 1919, comprising several railways that had become bankrupt and fallen into Government of Canada hands, along with some railways already owned by
14220-691: The late 1940s and numbered in 1952. The vast majority of modern road infrastructure in Ontario was built throughout the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. The cancellation of the Spadina Expressway and the introduction of the Environmental Assessment Act in the 1970s resulted in a decline in new highway construction in the decades since. In the late 1990s, nearly 5,000 kilometres (3,100 mi) of provincial highways were transferred, or "downloaded" back to lower levels of government. Few new provincial highways have been built in
14378-468: The late 20th century, CN gained extensive capacity in the United States by taking over such railroads as the Illinois Central . CN is a public company with 22,600 employees and, as of July 2024 , a market cap of approximately US$ 75 billion. CN was government-owned, as a Canadian Crown corporation , from its founding in 1919 until being privatized in 1995. As of 2019 , Bill Gates was
14536-418: The latter which became standard in the design for the widening of Highway 401 through Toronto in 1962. The Institute of Traffic Engineers subsequently recommended this design to replace the cloverleaf interchange throughout North America. Secondary highways exist solely within the districts of Northern Ontario that lack a county road system , to which they are analogous. The sole exception to this
14694-573: The lay of the land, as opposed to the straight tangents of the surveyed roads yet to come. Some roads in Ontario still closely follow these early Native and European trails, including the Kente Portage Trail (Old Portage Road) in Carrying Place , the oldest continuously used road in the province. The Spit of Land which forms its Entrance is capable of being fortified with a few heavy Guns as to prevent any Vessel from entering
14852-593: The local First Nations. For the next 150 years, France and Britain wrestled for control of the colony of Canada while simultaneously exploiting the land for the fur trade of North America . This culminated in the global Seven Years' War that ended with the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1763 , which ceded Canada to the British. The colony of Canada was renamed the Province of Quebec until 1791, when it
15010-406: The locally maintained Regional Road 8 (King Street East) through downtown Cambridge before resuming as a provincial highway at Branchton Road and soon after that entering the city of Hamilton. Highway 8 ends east of Peters Corners at an intersection with Hamilton Road 8. Highway 8 was one of the first roads assumed when the provincial highway system was established, though it
15168-426: The majority of the primary roads through southern Ontario formed part of the county road systems. The Department of Public Works paid up to 60% of the construction and maintenance costs for these roads, while the counties were responsible for the remaining 40%. The Ontario government passed an act in 1917 to permit the newly formed Department of Public Highways (DPHO) to take over (or assume) responsibility and upkeep of
15326-518: The mouth of the Maitland River beginning in 1827. After company commissioner Thomas Mercer Jones rode the muddy trail from Guelph to Goderich in June 1829, he recommended that it be widened to four rods (20 metres (66 ft)), which was done by the end of that year by Colonel Anthony Van Egmond. The trail was further improved to allow for the passage of wagons by 1832. The Canada Company venture would ultimately fail, but not before establishing
15484-616: The next 44.5 kilometres (27.7 mi), between Stratford and Kitchener. East of Stratford, the highway narrows back to two lanes and travels north of and parallel to the CN railway Guelph Subdivision . After passing through the village of Shakespeare , the route enters the Regional Municipality of Waterloo as it widens to four lanes and curves onto the New Hamburg Bypass. It travels south of New Hamburg and crosses
15642-551: The next phase, widening Highway 8 from four to eight lanes from Fergus Avenue to northwest of the Grand River, in April 2006. This work included rebuilding the Fairway Road interchange. Construction to twin Highway 8 over the Grand River and widen it northwest of the Sportsworld Drive interchange began in the summer of 2009, following the relocation of approximately 50 Wavy-rayed lampmussel , considered
15800-474: The north were instead under the mandate of the Department of Northern Development . The two primary trunk routes were extensions of Highway 11 and Highway 17 , to North Bay and Sault Ste. Marie , respectively. Seeking to open the far north, construction of a road to connect North Bay and Cochrane began in 1925, The new gravel highway was officially opened on July 2, 1927, by Minister of Lands and Forests William Finlayson . He suggested at
15958-777: The northernmost trackage of the contiguous North American railway network. Since being purchased by CN in 2006, it has been officially known as the Meander River Subdivision. Newfoundland Railway On 31 March 1949, CNR acquired the assets of the Newfoundland Railway , which in 1979 were reorganized into Terra Transport . CN officially abandoned its rail network in Newfoundland on 1 October 1988. Savage Alberta Railway On December 1, 2006, CN announced that it had purchased Savage Alberta Railway for $ 25 million and that it had begun operating
16116-465: The number within an outline of a rectangle. When these markers appear along or at an intersection with the indicated highway, they feature black text on a reflective white background. There are two exceptions to this: The QEW, which features blue text on a yellow background; and the provincially-maintained section of the tolled Highway 407 , which feature white text on a blue background, with an orange plate with TOLL below in black. Signs prior to 1993 had
16274-741: The opening that the road be named the Ferguson Highway in honour of premier Ferguson. The name was originally suggested by North Bay mayor Dan Barker. Despite the official opening, a section between Swastika and Ramore wasn't opened until August. The Ferguson Highway name was also applied to the Muskoka Road between Severn Bridge and North Bay. During the 1920s, the DPHO began to examine possible remedies to chronic congestion on along Highway 2, particularly between Toronto and Hamilton ( Lakeshore Road ), eventually deciding upon widening
16432-501: The owner of EWS , the principal freight train operator in the United Kingdom. On May 13, 2003, the provincial government of British Columbia announced the provincial Crown corporation , BC Rail (BCR), would be sold with the winning bidder receiving BCR's surface operating assets (locomotives, cars, and service facilities). The provincial government is retaining ownership of the tracks and right-of-way. On November 25, 2003, it
16590-595: The peninsula, with the dominant routes favouring an east–west orientation. The most significant of these was the Iroquois Trail that traversed along the foot of the Niagara Escarpment. In the east, Queenston provided an ideal crossing of the Niagara River . In the west, the escarpment breaks at Dundas, where the trail continued towards the Grand River at present-day Brantford , thus providing
16748-451: The position was established on April 15, 1896, under the Department of Agriculture . Doolittle, a Toronto physician, became one of the earliest automobile owners in Canada, and spurred the good roads movement. He became the first person to drive across Canada in 1925, utilizing the railways around Lake Superior where no roads existed, and is known as the "Father of the Trans-Canada Highway". The arrival of automobiles rapidly changed
16906-557: The present-day settlement patterns. Until 1918, the majority of the primary roads through southern Ontario formed part of the County Road System. The Department of Public Works and Highways paid up to 60% of the construction and maintenance costs for these roads, while the counties were responsible for the remaining 40%. The Ontario government passed an act in 1917 to permit the newly formed Department of Public Highways (DPHO) to take over (or assume) responsibility and upkeep of
17064-545: The province between St. David's near Queenston and the Whirlpool Rapids Bridge in Niagara Falls. The new route followed the present Four Mile Creek Road, St. Paul Avenue, and Portage Road south to Thorold Stone Road, which it followed east to Stanley Avenue, thence south to Bridge Street. However, none of these roads would receive a route number until the summer of 1925. Initially Highway 8
17222-515: The province in the image of Britain. The ambitious abolitionist statesman, whom served the British during the American Revolutionary War , was appointed to lead the new colony on September 12, 1791. Although Niagara-on-the-Lake (then known as Newark) served as the capital for a year, Simcoe moved it to what is now Toronto after July 30, 1793, at the behest of French merchant Philippe de Rocheblave , following
17380-615: The provincial highway network. They are analogous to the Interstate Highway System in the United States or the Autoroute system of neighbouring Quebec , and are regulated by the MTO. The 400-series designations were introduced in 1952, although Ontario had been constructing divided highways for two decades prior. Initially, only Highways 400, 401 and 402 were numbered; other designations followed in
17538-771: The rail industry, shippers, and political pressure, the STB placed a 15-month moratorium on all rail-industry mergers, effectively scuttling CN-BNSF plans. Both companies dropped their merger applications and have never refiled. After the STB moratorium expired, CN purchased Wisconsin Central (WC) in 2001, which allowed the company's rail network to encircle Lake Michigan and Lake Superior , permitting more efficient connections from Chicago to western Canada. The deal also included Canadian WC subsidiary Algoma Central Railway (ACR), giving access to Sault Ste. Marie and Michigan's Upper Peninsula . The purchase of Wisconsin Central also made CN
17696-918: The railway the same day. TransX Group of Companies In 2018, CN acquired the Winnipeg-based TransX Group of Companies. Transx continues to operate independently. Wisconsin Central Railroad In January 2001, CN acquired the WC for $ 800 million. CN's railway network in the late 1980s consisted of the company's Canadian trackage, along with the following U.S. subsidiary lines: Grand Trunk Western Railroad (GTW) operating in Michigan , Indiana , and Illinois ; Duluth, Winnipeg and Pacific Railway (DWP) operating in Minnesota ; Central Vermont Railway (CV) operating down
17854-484: The removal of a significant percentage of the provincial highway network. As a result of this, the portion of Highway 8 east of Highway 5 at Peters Corners, through Dundas, Hamilton and Stoney Creek, was transferred to the Regional Municipality of Hamilton–Wentworth on April 1, 1997. A 2.3-kilometre (1.4 mi) section of King Street in Kitchener, from north of the Highway 401 interchange to
18012-502: The retaining walls further north and a new Franklin Street bridge to accommodate the eight lane cross-section freeway. Included with this project was a reconstruction of the bottle-necked interchange of the Conestoga Parkway and Highway 8, including a new flyover ramp from westbound Conestoga Parkway to eastbound Highway 8 to replace one of the two loop ramps, and realignment of the northbound to eastbound ramp. Both were completed and opened on June 11, 2004. Work began on
18170-482: The roads in Ontario maintained by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO), including those designated as part of the King's Highway, secondary highways, and tertiary roads. Components of the system—comprising 16,900 kilometres (10,500 mi) of roads and 2,880 bridges —range in scale from Highway 401 , the busiest highway in North America, to unpaved forestry and mining access roads. The longest highway
18328-552: The roads that would be taken over by the province and eventually designated as Highway 8 had existed for nearly a century or longer. These include the Huron Road between Berlin ( renamed Kitchener in 1916 ) and Goderich, which was built c. 1827 ; the Dundas and the Hamilton Stone Road that were established in 1819 along a trail blazed between Hamilton and Berlin in 1798; and the Queenston Road (later
18486-482: The roadway midway between Lakeshore Road and Highway 5 (Dundas Street), or the Middle Road . It was to be more than twice the width of Lakeshore Road at 12 m (39 ft) and would carry two lanes of traffic in either direction. Construction on what was then known as the Queen Street Extension west of Toronto began in early 1931. Before the highway could be completed, Thomas McQuesten
18644-404: The route enters Hamilton. It bypasses the communities of Sheffield and Rockton before eventually reaching Peters Corners, where it meets the western terminus of Highway 5 at a multilane roundabout . Highway 8 ends 200 metres (660 ft) to the east at an intersection with Hamilton Road 8. While its history as a provincial highway dates back to 1918, significant portions of
18802-475: The route of Yonge Street . Simcoe's Rangers would commence "run[ning] the line of the new road" with Surveyor General Augustus Jones in February 1794. By mid-May, the Rangers had cleared and marked 14 lots from Eglinton Avenue to just north of Sheppard Avenue before being redirected to defend Fort Miami . William Berczy — and the nearly 200 Pennsylvania Dutch settlers whom accompanied him from
18960-448: The route were built. The first such bypass was in Kitchener, where until 1949, the highway travelled into and out of the downtown core along King Street and Queen Street before following Highland Road west towards Stratford. By 1950, to divert truck traffic from the King and Queen Street intersection, it was redirected slightly along Ottawa Street and Courtland Avenue. The New Hamburg Diversion opened in 1957, bypassing its namesake as well as
19118-403: The routes, except through National Parks . It is signed with distinctive green markers with a white maple leaf on them throughout Canada. While other provinces generally place a highway number within the maple leaf of the TCH marker (with a shared "Highway 1" designation across the western provinces ), Ontario places them below or beside provincial shields and either leaves them blank or inserts
19276-572: The sale of BC Rail. Also contested was the economic stimulus package the government gave cities along the BC Rail route. Some saw it as a buy-off to get the municipalities to cooperate with the lease, though the government asserted the package was intended to promote economic development along the corridor. Passenger service along the route had been ended by BC Rail a few years earlier due to ongoing losses resulting from deteriorating service. The cancelled passenger service has subsequently been replaced by
19434-521: The settlers themselves were largely left to their own resolve. Statute labour was gradually abolished around the turn of the 20th century. Malden Township was the first to do so in 1890, and a majority of other municipalities followed suit by the 1920s. However, the law remained in place provincially until being officially repealed on January 1, 2022. Beginning in 1852, the Grand Trunk Railway gradually assembled together many of
19592-468: The shorelines of the larger lakes. In 1615, French explorer Samuel de Champlain was the first European to pass through the lands between the Great Lakes , accompanied by Huron and Iroquois guides. His emissary Étienne Brûlé as well as Franciscan Récollets such as Joseph Le Caron and Joseph de La Roche Daillon were the first to explore various lands of the area, all with the assistance of
19750-545: The shores of Lake Huron at Goderich with the head of Lake Ontario in Hamilton. Portions of the highway through Goderich, Clinton, Seaforth, Mitchell and Stratford are locally-maintained under a Connecting Link Agreement with the provincial government. Highway 8 begins at its western terminus in downtown Goderich, at a junction with Highway 21 , within Huron County . It exits the town travelling southeast as
19908-558: The subsequent decades. While older freeways have some lapses in safety features, contemporary 400-series highways have design speeds of 130 km/h (81 mph), speed limits of 100 km/h (62 mph), various collision avoidance and traffic management systems, and several design standards adopted throughout North America. Of note are the Ontario Tall Wall median barrier and the Parclo A-4 interchange design,
20066-423: The system was more or less finalized at that point. However, certain related lawsuits were not resolved until as late as 1936. Canadian National Railways was born out of both wartime and domestic urgency. Until the rise of the personal automobile and creation of taxpayer-funded all-weather highways, railways were the only viable long-distance land transportation available in Canada. As such, their operation consumed
20224-405: The system, and in 1925, the numbers were signposted along the roads and marked on maps. In 1930, provincial highways were renamed King's Highways and the familiar crown route markers created. The DPHO was also renamed the Department of Highways (DHO). The 1930s saw several major depression relief projects built by manual labour, including the first inter-city divided highway in North America along
20382-414: The transaction shortly thereafter. The EJ&E lines create a bypass around the western side of heavily congested Chicago-area rail hub and its conversion to use for mainline freight traffic is expected to alleviate substantial bottlenecks for both regional and intercontinental rail traffic subject to lengthy delays entering and exiting Chicago freight yards. The purchase of the lightly used EJ&E corridor
20540-460: The transaction, CN completed the purchase of GLT on May 10, 2004. On December 24, 2008, the STB approved CN's purchase for $ 300 million of the principal lines of the Elgin, Joliet & Eastern Railway Company (EJ&E) ( reporting mark EJE) from the U.S. Steel Corporation , originally announced on September 27, 2007. The STB's decision was to become effective on January 23, 2009, with a closure of
20698-623: The two railroads were formally amalgamated into the CN system. Iowa Northern Railway In 2023, CN acquired the Iowa Northern Railway , but the transaction is awaiting approval by the Surface Transportation Board (STB). Mackenzie Northern Railway In 2006, CN acquired Mackenzie Northern Railway , previously purchased by RailAmerica . This purchase allowed CN to increase their network footprint and hold
20856-475: The various shortline railroads in what was soon to become Ontario to form a single route across the province, connecting Sarnia with Montreal via Toronto, by 1884. Simultaneously, the Canadian Pacific Railway constructed a route across northern Ontario, connecting Thunder Bay with Ottawa by 1880. The government largely subsidized these endeavours, and funding for road construction fell to
21014-467: The various levels of government to fund road development and maintenance. Members would travel from town to town and across the countryside, espousing the value of properly built roads to communities. Two of the most influential members in its early days were Archibald William Campbell and Dr. Perry Doolittle . "Good Roads" Campbell would become the province's first Instructor in Roadmaking when
21172-494: The wayside, despite the pleas of townships, villages and settlers. In 1896, the provincial Instructor in Road Making reported "It is doubtful if there is a mile of true macadam road in Ontario outside of a few towns or cities ... by far the greatest part of the milage of the province is mud, ruts and pitch-holes ..." The cries of municipalities went unanswered, but it would not stop their ambition. Coupled with
21330-430: The words "The King's Highway" below the crown, but current versions do not have the words. In addition to regular highway markers, there are trailblazers, which indicate a route towards that highway. These are the same shape as their corresponding highway marker. Trailblazers for the King's Highway, which can be shields or crowns, feature white text on a reflective green background, with the exception of trailblazers for
21488-555: The years leading up to 1920: The Canadian National Railway Company then evolved through the following steps: GTR management and shareholders opposed to nationalization took legal action, but after several years of arbitration, the GTR was finally absorbed into the CNR on January 30, 1923. Although several smaller independent railways would be added to the CNR in subsequent years as they went bankrupt or it became politically expedient to do so,
21646-435: Was achieved largely through aggressive cuts to the company's management structure, widescale layoffs in its workforce and continued abandonment or sale of its branch lines. In 1993 and 1994, the company experimented with a rebranding that saw the names CN , Grand Trunk Western , and Duluth, Winnipeg, and Pacific replaced under a collective CN North America moniker. In this time, CPR and CN entered into negotiations regarding
21804-462: Was almost entirely unpaved, except within towns and portions between Stratford and Shakespeare as well as between Kitchener and Hamilton. During the initial few years of the existence of the highway network, which were spent rebuilding culverts , bridges, and ditches, paving took a low priority. The first sections of Highway 8 paved by the DPHO were in 1922 between Hamilton and Stoney Creek, as well as between Sebringville and Stratford. The rest of
21962-488: Was announced CN's bid of CA$ 1 billion would be accepted over those of CPR and several U.S. companies. The transaction was closed effective July 15, 2004. Many opponents – including CPR – accused the government and CN of rigging the bidding process, though this has been denied by the government. Documents relating to the case are under court seal, as they are connected to a parallel marijuana grow-op investigation connected with two senior government aides also involved in
22120-461: Was appointed the new minister of the renamed DHO, with Robert Melville Smith as deputy minister, following the 1934 provincial elections . Smith, inspired by the German autobahns —new "dual-lane divided highways "—modified the design for Ontario roads, and McQuesten ordered the Middle Road be converted into this new form of highway. A 40 m (130 ft) right-of-way was purchased along
22278-487: Was chosen to run along the macadamized old Lake Shore Road between the two cities, instead of Dundas Street to the north, because of the numerous hills encountered along Dundas. In November 1914, the proposed highway was approved, and work began quickly to construct the road known today as Lake Shore Boulevard and Lakeshore Road from Toronto to Hamilton. The road was finished in November 1917, 5.5 metres (18 ft) wide and nearly 64 kilometres (40 mi) long, becoming
22436-459: Was completed for 10 kilometres (6 mi) southeast of Goderich, as well as between Dublin and Mitchell. The following year, it was completed on the remaining gap between Goderich and Clinton, as well as between Seaforth and Dublin. The final unpaved section of Highway 8, between Clinton and Seaforth, was completed in 1928. Highway 8 would remain unchanged for approximately 20 years until bypasses of several cities and towns along
22594-732: Was divided into Upper Canada (modern Southern Ontario) and Lower Canada (modern Southern Quebec) by the Constitutional Act . This was done to provide a British-style governance to the United Empire Loyalists fleeing north following the American Revolution . In addition to the native portages and lake shore trails, routes developed alongside significant rivers such as the St. Lawrence , Ottawa , Humber and Grand Rivers. These meandering trails followed
22752-409: Was enacted into law on July 13, 1995, and by November 28, 1995, the Government of Canada had completed an initial public offering (IPO) and transferred all of its shares to private investors. Two key prohibitions in this legislation include, 1) that no individual or corporate shareholder may own more than 15% of CN, and 2) that the company's headquarters must remain in Montreal , thus maintaining CN as
22910-410: Was first adopted in place of "provincial highway" in 1930, and signs similar to the current design replaced the previous triangular signs at that time. Some legislative acts refer to roads that are under the jurisdiction of the province as "provincial highways". The 400-series highways are a network of controlled-access highways throughout the southern portion of Ontario, forming a special subset of
23068-458: Was introduced in 1956 to service regions in Northern and Central Ontario , though it once included a route as far south as Lake Ontario. Many routes that would become secondary highways were already maintained by the province as development roads prior to being designated. Since 1998, none have existed south of the districts of Parry Sound and Nipissing . Secondary highways are numbered in
23226-607: Was merged with Central Vermont in 1971 with the creation of the Grand Trunk Corporation. In 1991 the GTW was merged with CN under the "North America" consolidation program. Many of GTWs locomotives and rolling stock would be repainted and the motive power would get the new CN scheme. Illinois Central Railroad In 1998, IC was purchased by CN, which also acquired the Chicago Central in the deal. A year later,
23384-645: Was nationalized in 1918 and consolidated into the Grand Trunk Western in 1971 with the creation of the Grand Trunk Corporation. Duluth Missabe & Iron Range Railroad The DM&IR was purchased by Great Lakes Transportation and in 2011 the DM&IR was merged into CN's Wisconsin Central Subsidiary. The DM&IR was acquired at the same time as the Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad. Duluth Winnipeg & Pacific Railroad The DWP
23542-570: Was nationalized with CN in 1918 and became a part of CN's Grand Trunk Corporation in 1971. In 2011 the DWP was merged into the larger Wisconsin Central Subsidiary of CN. Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway In 2009, CN acquired the Elgin, Joliet and Eastern Railway to assist with traffic congestion in Chicago and the surrounding area. In 2013 EJ&E was merged into the greater Wisconsin Central Subsidiary of CN. Grand Trunk Western Railroad The GTW
23700-580: Was not numbered until 1925. The routes that predate the highway, including the Huron Road , and the Queenston Stone Road , were established during the settlement of Southwestern Ontario between 1780 and 1830. These early trails served as the principal routes in the regions through which they passed and eventually became part of the provincial highway system circa 1918. Highway 8 is a 159.7-kilometre (99.2 mi) route that connects
23858-494: Was now the Federal Commissioner of Highways. Until the summer of 1925, Ontario highways were named rather than numbered. When route numbering was introduced, the following numbers were allotted: The number of Provincial Highways—as they were initially known—expanded quickly from there. The provincial highway network did not extend into the Canadian Shield nor Northern Ontario initially, and Trunk Roads in
24016-442: Was opened to traffic between Courtland Avenue and King Street on November 25, 1968, at which point the Highway 8 designation was redirected along King Street and the Conestoga Parkway to Homer Watson Boulevard, via Henry Strum Boulevard, and onto Highland Road. During the 1960s, the Department of Highways undertook several regional transportation studies to determine traffic patterns, which had changed significantly since
24174-444: Was originally slated to be twinned to four lanes in the 1980s, but the project was put off for a decade. Early works tree clearing got underway in 1991 before the project was put on hold for archeological excavations. Construction began to widen the route as far west as Waterloo Regional Road 12 (Queen Street), south of Petersburg, on July 6, 1992, with a planned completion by August 1993. Budget constraints brought on by
24332-440: Was rerouted along the 3.3-kilometre (2.1 mi) freeway segment, while King Street East and Shantz Hill Road were re-designated as Waterloo Regional Road 8. The province continues to maintain approximately 670 metres (2,198.2 ft) of Waterloo Regional Road 8 at the Highway 401 interchange as an unsigned portion of Highway. 8. The two lane segment of Highway 7/8 from Fischer-Hallman Road west to Baden
24490-489: Was responsible for the majority of road development and maintenance. However, by 1860, due to the unsuitability of much of the land for any kind of settlement or agriculture, the roads were almost impassable in many places, except when frozen in winter or dry in summer. The large timber drive that was clearing the forests of the Ottawa–Huron Tract in this period contributed somewhat to road construction and maintenance, but
24648-402: Was set to be announced in 2020, but has been delayed since. Ontario uses two distinct shapes of signage to mark the King's Highways. Confirmation markers, or reassurance markers , are utilized along the designated road to confirm (near intersections) or reassure (elsewhere) drivers that they are on the correct route. The markers, known as shields , feature the route number within an outline in
24806-424: Was the most successful of these ventures and brought settlers to vast areas of land in what would become Southwestern Ontario by building routes such as Huron Road and Toronto–Sydenham Road during the 1830s and 1840s. As the second township frontage along Lake Ontario also filled, the government came under pressure to open up the unforgiving terrain of the Canadian Shield to settlement and sought to establish
24964-464: Was transferred to the new Regional Municipality of Niagara on September 1, 1970. The region designated the former highway as Regional Road 81. Meanwhile, work continued on the Conestoga Parkway in the early 1970s, with a section between Courtland Avenue and Fischer-Hallman Drive opening on September 1, 1971. Around this time, construction was underway on a new two lane alignment of Highway 7/8, first announced in 1963, to connect
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