Ontario Highway 108 History (#2) - The King's Highways of Ontario

King's Highway 108 is an important collector highway which links Elliot Lake to Highway 17. Apart from Elliot Lake itself, the highway passes through no communities along its 42 km route. The highway was originally built as a mine access road after uranium was discovered in the Elliot Lake area. The mine access road was briefly known as Highway 612, but it was redesignated as King's Highway 108 in 1957. The highway continues north from Elliot Lake towards Quirke Lake. Highway 108 eventually turns into Highway 639, whose route continues north to Highway 546. Today, Highway 108 carries very little traffic north of Elliot Lake because most of the uranium mines are now closed. In 1998, a 5.7 km section of Highway 108 through the urbanized area of Elliot Lake was transferred to the municipality. Although the road is still signed as Highway 108 today, this urban section is now maintained by the City of Elliot Lake.

Highway 108 is a two-lane highway for its entire length between Highway 17 and Quirke Lake. However, the road is built to high standards, so passing lanes appear quite frequently along the highway. The only services located along Highway 108 are in Elliot Lake. The speed limit on Highway 108 is 80 km/h (50 mph), unless posted otherwise. The entire route of Highway 108 is designated as part of the Deer Trail, a scenic highway loop which begins at Serpent River, passes through Elliot Lake and ends at Iron Bridge. This scenic route offers motorists an opportunity to see some of the finest natural scenery in this part of Ontario. Please visit the Highway 108 Mileage Chart page for a list of mileage reference points along Highway 108.