Ontario Highway 17 Photographs - Page 13 - History of Ontario's Kings Highways

Left - Facing east along Hwy 17 towards Coniston from the Hwy 69 Interchange in Sudbury. The route of Hwy 17 briefly widens from a two-lane undivided highway into a four-lane divided freeway as the highway passes through the Hwy 69 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing southwest at the Hwy 17 & Hwy 69 Interchange in Sudbury. The ramps at this interchange are in a "Parclo A-2" configuration. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Hwy 17 at the Hwy 69 Interchange in Sudbury. Hwy 69 passes underneath Hwy 17 and becomes a city street immediately north of the interchange. Heading south however, Hwy 69 is a high-speed limited-access highway all the way to the Parry Sound area. Some sections of Hwy 69 south of Sudbury have recently been converted into a freeway with full access control. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Sign marking the current northern terminus of Hwy 69 at the Hwy 17 Interchange in Sudbury. Historically, the route of Hwy 69 continued north through Sudbury to Capreol. However, the route of Hwy 69 leading north from this point to Capreol was transferred over to the newly-formed Regional Municipality of Sudbury in the late 1970s. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Overhead guide signs on southbound Hwy 69 at the Hwy 17 Interchange in Sudbury. Traffic bound for North Bay must follow the ramp for Hwy 17 East at right, while the through lanes carry southbound traffic to Parry Sound via Hwy 69, and ultimately, to Toronto. Hwy 69 is the only road leading south from Sudbury towards Southern Ontario. Until the completion of Hwy 69 in the 1950s, southbound traffic had to travel along Hwy 17 to North Bay, then take Hwy 11 into Southern Ontario. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - The nearby route of Hwy 144 to Timmins is signed via Hwy 17 West from the Hwy 69 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Sign marking the Hwy 69 Interchange on eastbound Hwy 17 in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing south along Hwy 69 from the eastbound lanes of Hwy 17 in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The two traffic signals at the Hwy 17 Interchange along with another immediately to the south are actually the only signalized intersections located on Hwy 69. The only other traffic signal along Hwy 69 outside of Sudbury was located at Bowes Street in Parry Sound, but the signalized intersection was bypassed in 2001 when the new Parry Sound Bypass was completed. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 17 towards the Hwy 69 Interchange in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The Sudbury Southwest Bypass was completed during the 1970s, as part of a three-stage multi-year plan to divert long distance through traffic away from Downtown Sudbury. This view shows the bypassed former eastern terminus of the Sudbury Southwest Bypass at Hwy 69, which was abandoned in 1994 when the new interchange at Hwy 69 was completed. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Abandoned section of the Sudbury Southwest Bypass, facing west. Part of the former bypass lies buried under the new westbound lanes of Hwy 17. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - As originally constructed, the Sudbury Southwest Bypass curved sharply to the left at this point and joined Hwy 69 at Ida Street. When the Sudbury Southeast Bypass was constructed in the 1990s, the old intersection at Hwy 69 and Ida Street was bypassed and the grade-separated interchange we see today was opened to traffic. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17) from the Hwy 69 Interchange. The four lane divided freeway section of Hwy 17 converges into a single two-lane highway a short distance west of the Hwy 69 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east along Hwy 17 (Sudbury Southwest Bypass) between Long Lake Road and the Hwy 69 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along Hwy 17 (Sudbury Southwest Bypass) towards Long Lake Road, prior to the interchange construction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing southwest towards the intersection of Hwy 17 and Long Lake Road in Sudbury. This signalized intersection was replaced with a grade-separated interchange in 2008. Note the steel pilings for the new bridge to the right of the traffic signals. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing south along Long Lake Road towards Hwy 17 (Sudbury Southwest Bypass), prior to the interchange construction. Historically, Long Lake Road was also under the jurisdiction of the province as Secondary Highway 543. The route was transferred to the newly-formed Regional Municipality of Sudbury in 1974. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east along Hwy 17 (Sudbury Southwest Bypass) from Long Lake Road. Note the signs at right, which guide eastbound traffic to Hwy 69. The route of Hwy 69 is trailblazed along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along Hwy 17 towards Long Lake Road. Prior to being removed from service in 2008, this was the only set of traffic signals on the Sudbury Southwest Bypass. These traffic signals often resulted in long queues of traffic on both Long Lake Road and Hwy 17, particularly on summer weekends. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The Long Lake Road Underpass was constructed immediately north of the existing route of Hwy 17, in order to simplify construction staging. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing southeast at Hwy 17 and Long Lake Road, showing the new underpass construction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17) towards Long Lake Road, prior to the interchange construction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - This warning sign used to alert eastbound motorists on Hwy 17 of the upcoming traffic signals at Long Lake Road. A similar sign faced westbound Hwy 17 traffic as well. For eastbound motorists, this is the first set of traffic signals encountered on Hwy 17 since the Hwy 6 Junction near Espanola, which lies about 65 km to the west. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Completed Long Lake Road Interchange on the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17). See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17) at the completed Long Lake Road Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The ramps at the Long Lake Road Interchange on Hwy 17 are in a "Parclo B-2" configuration. Interchanges of this type are characterized by having a loop ramp on the downstream or far side of the grade separation. Although highway designers generally do not prefer the Parclo B-2 interchange configuration for a variety of technical reasons, the presence of several constraints in the area prevented the construction of other more conventional interchange types at this location. Silver Lake occupies the entire southwest quadrant of the interchange, while a municipal sports complex occupies the northeast quadrant of the interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Removal of the old pavement on the original alignment of Hwy 17 was almost complete when this photo was taken. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - A major disadvantage of the Parclo B-2 interchange is that traffic must turn left from the arterial onto the freeway. This can result in a longer grade separation that what would have otherwise been required. Fortunately, left-turning volumes are fairly low, as most traffic bound for eastbound Hwy 17 or southbound Hwy 69 would likely use Regent Street instead of Long Lake Road. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Newly-installed green guide sign marking the entrance ramp to Hwy 17 East from southbound Long Lake Road in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - As can be seen in this photo, the length of the left turn lanes on Long Lake Road extends through the Hwy 17 structure for both northbound and southbound directions. As a result, the freeway structure had to be lengthened accordingly. The inclusion of roundabouts at freeway ramp terminals can eliminate the need for a separated left turn lane such as these ones, since traffic can safely utilize a shared through-left lane when the intersection is controlled by a roundabout. The design of shared through-left lanes at signalized intersections is strongly discouraged. Signalized intersections with shared through-left lanes typically exhibit a high number of rear-end type collisions, because stopped traffic waiting for a gap in opposing traffic is in direct conflict with high-speed advancing traffic heading straight through the signalized intersection. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on September 20, 2008 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17) from Long Lake Road. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17) between Southview Drive and Long Lake Road. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17) approaching Southview Drive. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Junction Creek Bridge on the Sudbury Southwest Bypass (Hwy 17). This three span concrete girder structure was completed in 1973. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 17 towards the Junction Creek Bridge in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Southern side of the Junction Creek Bridge on Hwy 17 in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Structure identification number and date stamp (1973) on the Junction Creek Bridge. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Hwy 17 towards the Junction Creek Bridge in Sudbury. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Junction Creek forms a surprisingly deep ravine beneath Hwy 17. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Just west of the Junction Creek Bridge, Hwy 17 widens into a divided four-lane freeway. This freeway runs westerly from Sudbury to Whitefish, covering a distance of approximately 20 km. The four-lane highway was opened to traffic in the early 1980s. The new highway bypassed an old two-lane section of Hwy 17 that ran through the communities of Naughton and Whitefish. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west towards the Sudbury Road 55 Interchange from the Junction Creek Bridge. Sudbury Road 55 is a former alignment of Hwy 17, which was bypassed during the 1980s by the new four-lane highway. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Approaching the Sudbury Road 55 Interchange on Hwy 17, facing west. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 17 approaching the Sudbury Road 55 Interchange. As originally constructed, the dual roadways passed through independent rock cuts, as seen in this photo. However, the rock outcrop in the highway median was blasted out a few years ago, creating a single rock cut. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - This rather dramatic view of the four-lane freeway section of Hwy 17 between Sudbury and Whitefish was taken near the Sudbury Road 24 Underpass near Lively. The new route of Hwy 17 opened to traffic in November, 1980. It bypassed one of the most congested sections of Hwy 17 in the Sudbury area. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 17 in Sudbury near the Sudbury Road 24 Underpass. When the Hwy 17 Bypass opened in 1980, it was Northern Ontario's first freeway. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Hwy 17 between Lively and the Hwy 144 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Exit sign for Hwy 144 on the Hwy 17 Bypass. It is a very lonely 300 km drive north along Hwy 144 to Timmins from the Hwy 17 Interchange. Hwy 144 follows the Sudbury Northwest Bypass for 18 km to the community of Chelmsford. From there, Hwy 144 turns west briefly towards Dowling and Onaping, before the highway resumes its long journey north towards Timmins. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Hwy 144 Overpass on the Hwy 17 Bypass near Lively. This two-span post-tensioned structure was completed in 1986. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing north across the Hwy 144 Overpass on the Hwy 17 Bypass near Lively. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south across the Hwy 144 Overpass over Hwy 17 near Lively. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Structure identification number and date stamp (1986) on the Hwy 144 Overpass near Lively. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east towards Sudbury along the eastbound lanes of Hwy 17 from the Hwy 144 Overpass. Note the bilingual "Exit-Sortie" sign at right. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along the eastbound lanes of the Hwy 17 Freeway from the Hwy 144 Overpass. With the exception of the Sudbury Road 55 Interchange in Sudbury, the Hwy 144 Junction is the only highway interchange along the 20 km freeway between Sudbury and Whitefish. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Approaching the Hwy 17 Interchange on Hwy 144 near Lively, facing south. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing north along Hwy 144 towards Chelmsford from the Hwy 17 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Signs marking the southern terminus of Hwy 144 at the Hwy 17 Interchange near Lively. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 2, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Old Hwy 17 (now Sudbury Road 55) between Naughton and Whitefish. This former section of Hwy 17 was bypassed by the new four-lane freeway in 1980. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - A former alignment of Hwy 17 between Naughton and Whitefish. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing west along Old Hwy 17 towards the Vermilion River Bridge near Whitefish. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Vermilion River Bridge on Old Hwy 17. This four-span steel girder structure was completed in 1949. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Old Hwy 17 towards the Vermilion River Bridge near Whitefish. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Below-deck view of the Vermilion River Bridge on Old Hwy 17, showing the steel girder superstructure. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - A sidewalk extension was added along the north side of the Vermilion River Bridge. The Vermilion River is a popular spot for anglers. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)

Above - View of the Vermilion River from Old Hwy 17 near Whitefish. The old Vermilion River Bridge piers and abutments are still in place, even though 70 years has passed since the highway was relocated from the old steel truss bridge onto the current bridge. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on July 3, 2007 - © Cameron Bevers)