Ontario Highway 400A History - The King's Highways of Ontario

King's Highway 400A is a short section of freeway near Barrie that connects Highway 400 to Highway 11 at Crown Hill. The route was created in the late 1950s, when the new Highway 400 Extension was built between Barrie and Coldwater. When the new Highway 400 Extension opened to traffic on December 23, 1959, it bypassed a 1.1 km section of existing Highway 400. The route was renumbered as Highway 400A, although the route also appears in Department of Highways' records from the 1960s as Highway 120 and Highway 7053. None of these designations were ever posted along the highway or marked on road maps. The Highway 400A designation was primarily intended for accounting and inventory purposes. Since there are no interchanges along Highway 400A other than the Highway 11 Interchange at Crown Hill, it was not necessary to post the Highway 400A route number along the highway. The transition from Highway 400A to Highway 11 is essentially seamless. Accordingly, Highway 400A has always been signed as Highway 11 in the northbound direction and Highway 400 in the southbound direction since 1959.

Highway 400A is a four-lane divided freeway with a posted speed limit of 90 km/h (55 mph). There are no services on the highway, although services are available in nearby Barrie. There is no access to Northbound Highway 400 from Highway 400A. To access Highway 400 Northbound, follow Penetanguishene Road (Highway 93) north from Crown Hill. Please visit the Highway 400A Mileage Chart page for a list of mileage reference points along Highway 400A.