Ontario Highway 12

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Coldwater
West end Highway 93 – Midland
Location
Country
Waubaushene, Midland
Highway system
← Highway 11→ Highway 15
Former provincial highways
Highway 14  →

King's Highway 12, commonly referred to as Highway 12 and historically known as the Whitby and Sturgeon Bay Road, is a

Coldwater (Highway 400). Highway 12 connects several small towns along its 146 km (91 mi) route, and bypasses a short distance from many others. It is signed as a north–south route between Whitby and Orillia, and as an east–west route from there to Midland. The rural portions of the highway feature a posted speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph), often dropping to 50 km/h (31 mph) through built-up areas. The entire route is patrolled by the Ontario Provincial Police
.

Highway 12 was first established in early 1922 between

Durham Regional Highway 12 north of Regional Road 28 (Rossland Road). A majority of Highway 12 follows the historic Whitby and Sturgeon Bay Road, constructed in the mid-1800s to connect Whitby and Penetanguishene, both important naval ports
of the time.

Route description

A rural highway with a wide right-of-way vanishes into the distance.
Highway 12 east of Beaverton

The highway begins at Highway 407, just south of the community of Brooklin in the town of Whitby. It travels north and joins with Highway 7 on the southern edge of Brooklin. Highway 7 travels west to Markham, and is signed concurrently with Highway 12 for 39.1 km (24.3 mi) north of this point to Sunderland. North of Sunderland, Highway 7 separates and travels east to Lindsay; Highway 12 thereafter receives the Trans-Canada Highway designation.[3]

The highway continues north, following the eastern and northern shores of Lake Simcoe and bypassing Beaverton while curving to the northwest towards Orillia. It bypasses south of Orillia, and shares a routing with Highway 11 northwards for approximately two kilometres between interchanges 131 and 133. At the latter interchange, Highway 12 branches northwest towards Coldwater, where it joins Highway 400 between interchanges 141 and 147.[3]

At

Waubaushene, the Trans-Canada Highway designation ends as it follows Highway 400 as the Georgian Bay Route towards Parry Sound and Sudbury, while Highway 12 continues west towards Victoria Harbour, Port McNicoll, and the Martyrs' Shrine.[3] The highway ends at a junction with Highway 93 at the western town limits of Midland.[1]

History

The southern terminus of Highway 12 before Highway 407 East was constructed.

The oldest portion of Highway 12 was originally known as the Coldwater Portage and later the Coldwater Road, connecting the modern sites of Orillia and Coldwater by a 23 km (14 mi) trail.

John Colborne surveyed the portage in 1830 and ordered it to be widened for wagon use. As the area was settled and an increasing need for land connection with the south arose, a new road was proposed from Whitby to Sturgeon Bay (near Waubaushene). In February 1843, the residents formally petitioned the government to construct the route. The Sturgeon Bay Road, from Coldwater to Sturgeon Bay, was opened as a rough wagon road in 1844. The Atherley Narrows, separating Lake Simcoe from Lake Couchiching, were surveyed in the early 1840s and the first causeway and bridge constructed in the years that followed. The portion of the route between Whitby and Orillia, however, was still under construction during the second half of the decade.[4]

Highway 12 was first introduced into the provincial highway system on January 22, 1922,[2] The highway, initially known as the Whitby–Lindsay Road, was not numbered until the summer of 1925.[5] The route followed the present-day Highway 12 from Whitby to Sunderland, then travelled east to Lindsay.[6]

Highway assumptions carried out on June 22 and July 2, 1927, extended Highway 7 east from Brampton to Peterborough. In doing so, it became

Mara Townships was assumed. Several more miles were assumed on December 28, 1927, extending Highway 12 as far as Orillia.[7] On August 5, 1931, Highway 12 was extended from Orillia to Midland.[8] The majority of the route paralleled an existing railway that was constructed over a native portage
.

Highway 12 southeast of Orillia

Highway 12 remained unaltered for several decades, until the mid-1960s, when the Beaverton Bypass was constructed. On November 4, 1966, the 10.3 km (6.4 mi) bypass opened,[9] routing Highway 12 to the east. Portions of the former route of Highway 12 were renumbered as Highway 48B.[10] The highway again remained unchanged for several decades, until a short portion of the southern end of the highway was decommissioned in the late 1990s. On April 1, 1997, the portions of Highway 12 south of Brooklin were transferred to municipal government.[11] From Brooklin to Regional Road 28 (Rossland Road), the Regional Municipality of Durham has subsequently redesignated the road as Regional Highway 12.[12]

Prior to the highway downloadings of 1997 and 1998, Highway 12 was also not routed concurrently along Highway 400 between Coldwater and Waubaushene, but instead ran as a single roadway parallel to, and crossing, the 400. The bypassed section was redesignated as Simcoe County Road 16. That section was signed as "TO 12" until 2016, when Highway 12 was officially rerouted along Vasey Road and onto a concurrency with Highway 400.

Major intersections

The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 12, as noted by the

Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.[1]
 

DivisionLocationkm[1]miDestinationsNotes
Toronto, Kingston
Former southern terminus;[11] former Highway 12 followed Brock Street; Highway 401 exit 410
−6.5−4.0Dundas StreetFormerly Highway 2
−4.5−2.8 
Regional Road 28 (Rossland Road)
Regional Highway 12 southern terminus[12]
0.00.0 Highway 12 begins
 
Regional Highway 12
ends
Spencers Road		Regional Highway 12 northern terminus; Highway 12 southern terminus
1.30.81 
Toronto, Peterborough
Toll highway; Highway 407 exit 118
Regional Road 3 east (Winchester Road)
Southern end of Highway 7 concurrency
Regional Road 26
south (Thickson Road)
Regional Road 21 west (Goodwood Road)
Manchester
19.011.8 
Port Perry, Uxbridge
23.214.4 
Stouffville
29.018.0 
Saintfield
Blackwater
38.223.7 
Regional Road 10 west (River Street)
Sunderland
41.025.5  Highway 7 east / TCH – LindsayNorthern end of Highway 7 concurrency; southern end of Trans-Canada Highway (continues on Highway 7 east)
46.829.1 
Regional Road 12 – Cannington
50.931.6 
Toronto
Former southern end of Highway 48 concurrency
57.035.4 
Regional Road 15
(Simcoe Street)
61.138.0 
Regional Road 23 south (Mara Road) – Beaverton
63.639.5 
Regional Highway 48 east (Portage Road)
Former Highway 48 east; northern end of Highway 48 concurrency
64.340.0 
Regional Road 50 north – Gamebridge
County Road 51 south – Gamebridge
70.143.6 
Brechin
74.146.0 
County Road 169 north – Gravenhurst
Formerly Highway 169 north
88.955.2 
Atherley
Lake Couchiching
Lake Simcoe		89.955.9Atherley Narrows Bridge
Orillia91.456.8Atherley Road
93.658.2West Street
94.959.0Memorial Avenue
96.860.1 
Barrie
Old Barrie Road East		Southern end of Highway 11 concurrency; Highway 11 exit 131
99.261.6Coldwater Road West
 Highway 11 north – North Bay, Gravenhurst		Northern end of Highway 11 concurrency; Highway 11 exit 133
Craighurst
Prices Corners
Elmvale
County Road 17
west
120.274.7Sturgeon Bay Road
 
County Road 16
north		Highway 12 formerly followed County Road 16 north
120.674.9 
County Road 23
west (Vasey Road)		Highway 400 exit 141; southern end of Highway 400 concurrency
Waubaushene Highway 400 exit 147; northern end of Highway 400 concurrency; northern end of Trans-Canada Highway
(continues on Highway 400 north); Highway 12 formerly followed County Road 16 south
132.782.5Park Street
Victoria Harbour
139.186.4 
County Road 58 south (Old Fort Road)
Port McNicoll
Penetanguishene
Northern terminus
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

  1. ^
    Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2016). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts"
    . Retrieved January 1, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Provincial Highways Assumed in 1922". Annual Report (Report). Department of Public Highways. 1922. p. 31.
  3. ^
    ISBN 1-55198-226-9
    .
  4. ^ Hunter, Andrew F (1909). "The First Colonization Roads". A History of Simcoe County. Vol. 1. Barrie: County Council. pp. 88–91. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2011.
  5. ^ "Provincial Highways Now Being Numbered". The Canadian Engineer. 49 (8). Monetary Times Print: 246. August 25, 1925. Numbering of the various provincial highways in Ontario has been commenced by the Department of Public Highways. Resident engineers are now receiving metal numbers to be placed on poles along the provincial highways...Road No. 12 — To Karwartha (sic) Lakes, via Whitby to Lindsay
  6. ISBN 0-7743-9388-2
    .
  7. ^ "Appendix 6 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions of Sections". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1928. p. 60.
  8. ^ "Appendix 5 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions of Sections". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1932. p. 78.
  9. ^ AADT Traffic Volumes 1955–1969 And Traffic Collision Data 1967–1969. Department of Highways. 1969. p. 49.
  10. ^ AADT Traffic Volumes 1955–1969 And Traffic Collision Data 1967–1969. Department of Highways. 1969. p. 85.
  11. ^ a b Highway Transfers List (Report). Ministry of Transportation of Ontario. April 1, 1997. p. 2.
  12. ^ a b Regional Municipality of Durham. "Regional Roads List". Archived from the original on 2020-06-15. Retrieved June 14, 2020.
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