Ontario Highway 102

Last updated

Ontario 102.svg

Highway 102

Route information
Maintained by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario
Length32.8 km [1]  (20.4 mi)
Existed1972 [2] [3] –present
Major junctions
West endOntario 11 crown.svg Ontario 17 crown.svg  Highway 11  / Highway 17 at Sistonens Corners
Major intersectionsOntario Highway 589.svg  Highway 589 – Lappe
East endOntario 11 crown.svg Ontario 17 crown.svg  Highway 11  / Highway 17 in Thunder Bay
Location
Country Canada
Province Ontario
Highway system
← Ontario 101.svg Highway 101 → Ontario 105.svg Highway 105
Former provincial highways
Highway 103 Ontario 103.svg →

King's Highway 102, commonly referred to as Highway 102, formerly as Highway 11A and Highway 17A and historically as the Dawson Road , is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario, serving as a northern bypass to the city of Thunder Bay for all vehicle traffic. Both the western and eastern termini of Highway 102 are with the concurrency of Highway 11 and Highway 17; in the rural community of Sistonens Corners to the west and in Thunder Bay to the east. The majority of Highway 102 is surrounded by thick forests and swamps. However, owing to its historic nature, it is lined with residences outside of urban Thunder Bay.

Contents

Although the road Highway 102 now follows dates to the 1850s, it did not become a provincial highway until 1937, when it was designated as Highway 17A. Between 1960 and 1971, following the extension of Highway 11 to Rainy River, it was also designated as Highway 11A. By 1972, the route had been renumbered as Highway 102.

Route description

Highway 102 within Thunder Bay Dawson Road Thunder Bay.jpg
Highway 102 within Thunder Bay

Highway 102 passes through terrain typical of northern Ontario highways, including thick boreal forest and muskeg. On a 32.8 km (20.4 mi) eastward journey, the surroundings quickly change from isolated muskeg-ridden foothills to urban development as the highway enters Thunder Bay from the north. Highway 102 provides a shortcut over the Trans-Canada Highway to the south.

Highway 102 begins at Sistonens Corners, immediately south of a Canadian National Railway (CN) overpass, along Highway 11 and Highway 17. A truck stop sits to the west of the intersection. From there, the two-lane road travels east through rolling hills, with muskeg dotting the valleys between the hills. It parallels roughly 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) to the south of the Shebandowan River for 4.5 kilometres (2.8 mi) before crossing both the CN and Canadian Pacific Railway tracks as well as the Kaministiquia River. The highway meets Silver Falls Road, which proceeds north to Silver Falls Provincial Park. The terrain becomes gentler as the route passes several houses while travelling alongside a creek. The highway curves as it meets a power transmission line, which it then parallels. It zig-zags southeast, passing alongside Mud Lake and briefly curving back to the east. Curving back to the southeast, the highway serves several houses before crossing into Thunder Bay at Townline Road and curving to the east. [4]

Within the city limits, the density of residences surrounding the highway rapidly increases as the terrain flattens. The highway intersects Mapleward Road, then diverges from the power transmission lines and curves southeast into suburban Thunder Bay. It meets Secondary Highway 589 after passing the Emerald Greens Golf Course. The route then travels through North McIntyre, formerly a separate community which was annexed. It descends through a wide muskeg, after which it is crossed by several power transmission lines. The highway enters urban Thunder Bay immediately thereafter, where it passes to the west of County Fair Mall before ending at an intersection with the Thunder Bay Expressway. [4] The road which carries Highway 102 continues through Thunder Bay as Red River Road, and was once part of the highway.[ citation needed ]

History

Work on widening the Dawson Road and clearing a new alignment in 1935 Highway 17A construction near Port Arthur, 1935.png
Work on widening the Dawson Road and clearing a new alignment in 1935

Highway 102 was designated by the beginning of 1972, following the route of the former Highway 11A and Highway 17A. Prior to that, the Dawson Road generally followed the present route of the highway.

The history of the Dawson Road began in 1857 when Henry Hind and Simon Dawson were commissioned to survey the territorial claims of the Hudson's Bay Company, as well as to survey a route between Lake Superior and the Red River. A second set of surveys were carried out by Captain John Palliser that same year. The latter recommended avoiding the Kaministiquia River, but ultimately Hind and Dawson's route was chosen. By 1868, the route was blazed between Shebandowan and what would soon be named Prince Arthur's Landing (later changed to Port Arthur). In 1870, the Wolseley Expedition set out from Toronto to end the Red River Rebellion. When Colonel Garnet Wolseley arrived at the present site of Winnipeg, the rebels had fled. However, the expedition resulted in the construction of a road along Dawson's route. [5] It was further improved in 1871. [6]

In 1935, the Department of Northern Development (DND) began construction on a northern bypass of Port Arthur, mostly following the Dawson Road. This road was designated Highway 17A on April 1, 1937, when the DND merged into the Department of Highways. [7] [8] In 1959, Highway 120 was renumbered as Highway 11, and a 180-kilometre (110 mi) concurrency with Highway 17 between Shabaqua Corners and Nipigon was created to join the discontinuous segments. As the northern bypass of Port Arthur now formed an alternate route to both Highway 11 and 17, it was codesignated as Highway 11A and 17A. [9]

Between January 1971 and 1972, Highway 11A and Highway 17A were redesignated as Highway 102. [2] [3] Work began shortly thereafter to realign several sections of the highway with dangerous curves and steep grades approaching the Kaministiquia River; the highway opened in 1975, featuring a new bridge over the river.[ citation needed ]

Major intersections

The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 102, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario. [1] The entire route is located in Thunder Bay District. [4] [10]  

Locationkm [1] miDestinationsNotes
Sistonens Corners0.00.0Ontario 11 crown.svg Ontario 17 crown.svg  TCH-blank.svg   Highway 11  / Highway 17  / TCH – Shabaqua Corners Western terminus
Kaministiquia 4.93.0Silver Falls RoadTo Silver Falls Provincial Park and Highway 591
Thunder Bay 22.614.0Mapleward Road
26.016.2End of Thunder Bay jurisdiction over highway [1]
26.216.3Ontario Highway 589.svg  Highway 589 (Dog Lake Road) – Lappe
32.720.3Beginning of Thunder Bay jurisdiction over highway [1]
32.820.4Ontario 11 crown.svg Ontario 17 crown.svg  TCH-blank.svg   Highway 11  / Highway 17  / TCH (Thunder Bay Expressway) – Nipigon Eastern terminus; continues as Red River Road
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Related Research Articles

The Provincial Highway Network consists of all 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 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.

King's Highway 101, commonly referred to as Highway 101, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The 473.3-kilometre (294.1 mi) highway connects Highway 17 west of Wawa with Highway 11 in Matheson before continuing east to the Ontario–Quebec border where it becomes Route 388. The highway forms one of the only connections between the two routes of the Trans-Canada Highway between Nipigon and Temagami, and crosses some of the most remote regions of Northern Ontario. Major junctions are located with Highway 129 near Chapleau and Highway 144 southwest of Timmins, though the distance between these junctions is significant.

King's Highway 17, more commonly known as Highway 17, is a provincially maintained highway and the primary route of the Trans-Canada Highway through the Canadian province of Ontario. It begins at the Manitoba boundary, 50 km (31 mi) west of Kenora, and the main section ends where Highway 417 begins just west of Arnprior. A small disconnected signed section of the highway still remains within the Ottawa Region between County Road 29 and Grants Side Road. This makes it Ontario's longest highway.

King's Highway 11, commonly referred to as Highway 11, is a provincially-maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. At 1,784.9 kilometres (1,109.1 mi), it is the second-longest highway in the province, after Highway 17. Highway 11 begins at Highway 400 in Barrie and arches through northern Ontario to the Ontario–Minnesota border at Rainy River via Thunder Bay; the road continues as Minnesota State Highway 72 across the Baudette–Rainy River International Bridge. North and west of North Bay, Highway 11 forms part of the Trans-Canada Highway and is part of MOM's Way between Thunder Bay and Rainy River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ontario Highway 61</span> Ontario provincial highway

King's Highway 61, commonly referred to as Highway 61 and historically known as the Scott Highway, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The 61-kilometre (38 mi) route connects the Pigeon River Bridge, where it crosses into the United States and becomes Minnesota State Highway 61, with a junction at Highway 11, Highway 17 and the Harbour Expressway in Thunder Bay. The highway forms part of the Lake Superior Circle Tour.

The Thunder Bay Expressway, originally known as the Lakehead Expressway is a high-capacity at-grade suburban limited-access road around the western side of Thunder Bay in the Canadian province of Ontario. The 15.3 km (9.5 mi) route travels in a generally north–south direction on the city's west side. It is signed as part of Highway 61 at its southern end, and as part of the concurrent route of Highway 11 and Highway 17. The expressway features several at-grade intersections between its southern terminus at Arthur Street West and the Harbour Expressway and its northeastern terminus at Hodder Avenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ontario Highway 71</span> Ontario provincial highway

King's Highway 71, commonly referred to as Highway 71, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The 194-kilometre-long (121 mi) route begins at the Fort Frances–International Falls International Bridge in Fort Frances, continuing from US Highway 53 (US 53) and US 71 in Minnesota, and travels west concurrently with Highway 11 for 40 kilometres (25 mi) to Chapple. At that point, Highway 11 continues west while Highway 71 branches north and travels 154 kilometres (96 mi) to a junction with Highway 17 just east of Kenora. Highway 71 forms a branch of the Trans-Canada Highway for its entire length, with the exception of the extremely short segment south of Highway 11 in Fort Frances.

King's Highway 28, commonly referred to as Highway 28, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The southwest–northeast route extends from Highway 7 east of Peterborough, to Highway 41 in Denbigh. The route passes over undulating hills before entering the Canadian Shield near Burleigh Falls, and gradually turns eastward.

King's Highway 63, commonly referred to as Highway 63, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The 63.5-kilometre (39.5 mi) route travels from Highway 11 and Highway 17 in North Bay northeast to the Ontario-Quebec provincial boundary, where it continues as Route 101 into Témiscaming.

King's Highway 72, commonly referred to as Highway 72, is a provincially maintained highway in the northern half of the Canadian province of Ontario. The highway connects Highway 17 in Dinorwic with the town of Sioux Lookout, where there are connections with Highway 516 towards Savant Lake and Highway 642 towards Silver Dollar.

King's Highway 130, commonly known as Highway 130, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. It begins at a junction with Highway 61 and travels 15.4 km (9.6 mi) north-west to the Trans-Canada Highway, Highway 11 and Highway 17, west of Thunder Bay. Highway 130 is a short connecting highway, and passes entirely through the outskirts of Thunder Bay, connecting several minor communities and providing a shortcut for traffic travelling from the south to the west or vice versa. The speed limit along the highway is 80 km/h (50 mph); it is patrolled by the Ontario Provincial Police.

Shabaqua Corners is a dispersed rural community and unincorporated area in geographic Dawson Road Lots Township in the Unorganized Part of Thunder Bay District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. It is 56 kilometres (35 mi) west of Thunder Bay at the junction of Ontario Highway 17 and Ontario Highway 11; both highways at this point are part of the Trans-Canada Highway. There is an Ontario Provincial Police detachment in the community. The Oskondaga River flows through the community to its mouth at the Shebandowan River just to the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kawartha Lakes Road 35</span> Former Ontario provincial highway

Kawartha Lakes Road 35, also known as Victoria Road and Fennel Road, is a municipally-maintained road located in the city of Kawartha Lakes, in the Canadian province of Ontario. The road is mostly straight, running in a north–south orientation throughout its length. It began at the hamlet of Glenarm and travels 30.5 kilometres (19.0 mi) to Uphill.

King's Highway 70, commonly referred to as Highway 70, was a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario, which provided a shorter route from Highway 6 and Highway 21 in Springmount to Highway 6 in Hepworth. The route, which now forms part of Highway 6, was 15.1 kilometres (9.4 mi) long and travelled in a southeast–northwest direction west of Owen Sound. The route followed an early trail blazed by deputy surveyor Charles Rankin in 1842 that was upgraded to a modern road in the 1920s. Highway 70 was designated in 1965 and renumbered as Highway 6 in 1997. Another Highway 70 existed near Kenora between 1937 and 1959 before being renumbered as Highway 71. This designation was applied along the newly opened Heenan Highway, shortly after the Department of Highways (DHO) began numbering routes in northern Ontario. However, a series of renumberings in 1960 led to the entire length becoming part of Highway 71.

The Matawin River is a river in Thunder Bay District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin and is a right tributary of the Kaministiquia River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shebandowan River</span> River in Ontario, Canada

The Shebandowan River is a river in Thunder Bay District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin and is a left tributary of the Matawin River. Three-quarters of the length of the river valley is paralleled by Ontario Highway 11, at this point part of the Trans-Canada Highway; and the entire length of the river valley is paralleled by a Canadian National Railway main line, built originally as the Canadian Northern Railway transcontinental main line.

The Oskondaga River is a river in Thunder Bay District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin and is a left tributary of the Shebandowan River. The river valley is paralleled by Ontario Highway 17, at this point part of the Trans-Canada Highway; and by both the Canadian Pacific Railway transcontinental main line, still in operation, and the Canadian National Railway Graham Subdivision main line, originally built as part of the National Transcontinental Railway, now abandoned.

The Swamp River is a river in Thunder Bay District in Northwestern Ontario, Canada. It is in the Great Lakes Basin and is a tributary of Shebandowan Lakes.

References

Sources
  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2016). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts" . Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  2. 1 2 Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by Photogrammetry Office. Ontario Department of Highways. 1971. § L6.
  3. 1 2 Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by Photogrammetry Office. Department of Transportation and Communications. 1972. § L6.
  4. 1 2 3 Ontario Back Road Atlas (Map). Cartography by MapArt. Peter Heiler Ltd. 2010. p. 107. § H–J8. ISBN   978-1-55198-226-7.
  5. ↑ Bolz 1999, pp. 8–10.
  6. ↑ Wilkins 1998, p. 69.
  7. ↑ Shragge & Bagnato 1984, p. 71.
  8. ↑ Ontario Official Government Road Map (Map). Department of Highways. 1938–39. § E12–F13.
  9. ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by C.P. Robins. Ontario Department of Highways. 1960. § H13–G14.
  10. ↑ Minutillo, Carmine (2005). Backroad Mapbook Northwestern Ontario. Mussio Ventures. pp. 5–6, 15. ISBN   978-1-897225-05-9.
Bibliography
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