Ontario Highway 7A
Route information | |||||||
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Auxiliary route of Highway 7 | |||||||
Maintained by The Ministry of Transportation of Ontario | |||||||
Length | 48.3 km[1] (30.0 mi) | ||||||
Existed | November 29, 1933[2]–present | ||||||
Major junctions | |||||||
West end | Highway 7 / Highway 12 near Port Perry | ||||||
Highway 35 north - Lindsay Highway 35 south - Newcastle | |||||||
East end | Highway 115 near Peterborough | ||||||
Location | |||||||
Country | Canada | ||||||
Province | Ontario | ||||||
Towns | Port Perry, Bethany | ||||||
Highway system | |||||||
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King's Highway 7A, commonly referred to as Highway 7A, is a
Highway 7A is 48.3 kilometres (30.0 mi) long, passing through the Regional Municipality of Durham, city of Kawartha Lakes and Peterborough County. Outside of the communities it serves, the highway passes through generally agricultural areas, though it enters the Oak Ridges Moraine near Highway 35.
The highway was designated in the 1930s in downtown Peterborough and shortly thereafter was extended west to Manchester. The causeways over Lake Scugog date back to the 1850s, and were repeatedly reinforced over the course of a century to reach their current state. During the 1950s, the construction of Highway 115 caused the route of Highway 7A to be modified. At the end of the decade, the causeways were reconstructed for the final time. The eastern end of the highway was reconfigured several times before arriving at its current routing after the 1960s.
Route description
Highway 7A is a 48.3-kilometre (30.0 mi) highway which serves as an alternative route to Highway 7, bypassing
On Scugog Island now, the highway first passes Island Road (
Returning to farmland, the highway enters the northern tip of the
Highway 7A continues east through a valley-ridden region containing a mix of thick
History
The history of Highway 7A is largely connected to that of
Development
Lake Scugog was created when
The bridge proved to be an expensive burden, and for many years the responsibility for maintaining it was repeatedly shifted from township to county and back again. Ice would often carry away entire sections of the bridge during the spring thaw, requiring replanking or complete reconstruction. In the spring of 1876, work began to convert the first 180 metres (590 ft) of the Port Perry side of the floating bridge into a permanent embankment. Logs were placed along both sides the bridge and various materials piled between them, sinking it into the soft soil below. Earth was laid over top to provide a stable surface. The process also increased the width of the roadbed from 3.7 metres (12 ft) to 5.5 metres (18 ft).[7][8]
Further construction on the Scugog Causeway met fierce opposition from county officials, who argued that the new method had not even faced a winter season. It took until July 1878 for work to resume, when Port Perry Reeve Joshua Wright managed to manipulate the county council, convincing them "to strike out the magnificent $150 [grant for seasonal maintenance which they had offered] and stipulate that 600 feet be filled in on the east end of the bridge." A contract for this work was tendered in June 1879, and completed one year later. Finally, in early 1885, work on the final 180 metres began. This work was completed in July, at which point repairs were carried out on the existing sections.[7]
Construction of the 4.2-kilometre (2.6 mi) Cartwright Causeway took place after nearly two decades of effort by its chief promoter, Joseph Bigelow. Bigelow witnessed the business opportunity that the Scugog Bridge opened up, and wished to construct a second structure towards
Undeterred, Bigelow continued to accrue funds from other level of government and surrounding townships. By 1889, he had enough to begin work. Unlike the Scugog Bridge, Bigelow ensured that his structure would be permanent from the beginning and constructed a majority of the causeway by removing the top layer of peat from the marsh, piling logs in lengthwise approximately a metre deep and covering the exposed surface with the same depth of earth. By early 1891, the causeway was completed, and shortly thereafter trees were planted along both sides.[9]
The combined 12-kilometre (7.5 mi) route quickly grew to be the main east–west transportation corridor in the area. However, due to the soft soils and clay on which the causeway was built, it sank at a continuous rate and still required maintenance to keep it above water during the spring thaw. In 1928, both causeways were reinforced, widened and heightened in response to growing automobile usage.[7]
King's Highway
On November 29, 1933, the Department of Highways assumed Lansdowne Street in Peterborough as Highway 7A, providing an alternate route south of downtown.[2] At that point in time, Highway 7 entered Peterborough by following Lindsay Street east from Fowlers Corners to Chemong Road and curving southeast. It followed Chemong Road to Reid Street, which it then followed south. The route proceeded west along McDonnel Street and south along George Street to Lansdowne Street, which it followed east out of Peterborough. Highway 28 entered Peterborough from the west along Lansdowne Street, curving north at what is now Ford Street. It followed this onto what is now Clonsilla Avenue, and curved east onto Charlotte Street, which it followed to George Street. Highway 7A thus provided a direct route between Highway 28 and Highway 7 south of Peterborough.[10]
In May 1938, Highway 7A was extended west to Highway 7 and Highway 12 at Manchester via Bethany and Port Perry.[11] This created a concurrency with Highway 28 and brought the length of the highway to 68 kilometres (42 mi). The new extension was a gravel road between Port Perry and Highway 28,[10] but the section between Port Perry and Blackstock was paved by October 1939.[11]
In late 1954, Highway 115 was opened between Highway 35 at
During the late 1950s, spring flooding began to become problematic on both causeways, prompting the Department of Highways to reconstruct them and the approaches. Soil investigations were carried out over the length of the road in mid-1959, and in August 1960 contracts were tendered for construction. The existing causeways were both closed as the adjacent marsh was excavated up to 6 metres (20 ft) deep. Nearby properties were purchased for the sole purpose of excavating for earth for fill, which was trucked at a continuous rate. Over 8,100,000 cubic feet (230,000 m3) of organic material was removed from the marsh and 12,494,574 cubic feet (353,806.9 m3) of fill placed over several years of construction. As a result of this, the roadbed no longer sinks into the marsh and spring melt no longer poses an issue.[14]
Major intersections
The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 7A, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.[15]
Division | Location | km[15] | mi | Destinations | Notes |
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Manchester ; western terminus; continues as Regional Road 21 | |||||
3.9 | 2.4 | Regional Road 2 (Simcoe Street) | Port Perry | ||
6.3 | 3.9 | Mississaugas of Scugog Island and Great Blue Heron Casino | |||
11.5 | 7.1 | Blackstock | |||
14.8 | 9.2 | Caesarea | |||
Janetville | |||||
28.9 | 18.0 | Highway 35 north – Lindsay | Western end of Highway 35 concurrency | ||
30.4 | 18.9 | Highway 35 south – Newcastle | Eastern end of Highway 35 concurrency; commuter parking available | ||
Cavan | |||||
48.3 | 30.0 | Toronto | Highway 115 exit 40; eastern terminus; formerly beginning of concurrency with Highway 115 | ||
53.0 | 32.9 | Highway 115 exit 45; former end of Highway 115 concurrency; Highway 7A follows present-day Highway 7; formerly Highway 28 south | |||
56.6 | 35.2 | County Road 15 east | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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References
- Sources
- ^ Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2007). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
- ^ a b "Appendix 4 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1934. p. 37. Retrieved February 2, 2021 – via Internet Archives.
- ^ ISBN 1-55198-226-9.
- ^ a b c d e f Google (August 10, 2011). "Highway 7A Route and Surroundings" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved August 10, 2011.
- ^ Google (July 21, 2011). "Old Highway 7A alignment" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved July 21, 2011.
- ^ Kirkconnell, Watson (1967), County of Victoria, Centennial History, Victoria County Council, p. 30, retrieved July 30, 2009
- ^ a b c d "The Scugog Bridge". Port Perry/Scugog Township Heritage Gallery. Retrieved July 12, 2011.
- ^ Wrong 1962, p. 70.
- ^ a b "The Cartwright Causeway". Port Perry/Scugog Township Heritage Gallery. Retrieved July 14, 2011.
- ^ a b Ontario Official Government Road Map (Map). Cartography by D. Barclay. Department of Highways. January 1, 1934. § G4.
- ^ a b "Timeline: 1930-1939". May 1938, October 1939. Port Perry/Scugog Township Heritage Gallery. Retrieved July 11, 2011.
- ^ Wrong 1962, p. 76.
- ^ "Signs of the Times". Milestones. 2 (1). Ontario Good Roads Association. February 2002. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
- ^ Wrong 1962, pp. 74–75.
- ^ Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2016). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Retrieved January 1, 2021.
- Bibliography
- Wrong, G.A (October 1962). Construction of the Port Perry Causeway. Proceedings of the Eighth Muskeg Research Conference (Report). National Research Council of Canada. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
External links