Ontario Highway 400 Photographs - Page 11 - History of Ontario's Kings Highways

Left - View of the southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes, facing south towards the Hwy 407 Express Toll Route (ETR) Interchange. During the 1990s, a short Express-Collector Lane System was constructed along Hwy 400 to service the Hwy 7 and Langstaff Road Interchanges. The southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes pass below the southbound exit ramp from Hwy 400 to Hwy 407 ETR. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Southern side of the Hwy 7 Overpass (Site #37-125) on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. This five-span trapezoidal steel box girder structure was constructed under Contract #1987-60 and was completed in 1988. This new multi-span structure replaced an older single-span concrete rigid frame structure which was completed along the Toronto-Barrie Highway (Hwy 400) in 1950. The original Hwy 7 Overpass was built under Contract #1948-83 (structural steel) and Contract #1949-63 (general contract). The original Hwy 7 Overpass can be seen in this Historical 1950 Photo, taken while the Toronto-Barrie Highway was still being constructed through the proposed Hwy 7 Cloverleaf. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south along Hwy 400 towards Toronto from the Hwy 7 Interchange in Vaughan. When the Toronto-Barrie Highway (Hwy 400) was first opened to traffic in the early 1950s, the highway had a total of four lanes, with two lanes provided for each direction of traffic. The highway was expanded from four to six lanes from a point just north of the Finch Avenue Interchange in Toronto to a point just north of the Maple Sideroad Interchange (today's Major Mackenzie Drive) in Vaughan under Contract #1971-14. Additional widening of Hwy 400 took place in the 1990s to accommodate the construction of Hwy 407 ETR, including the construction of an Express-Collector Lane System. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of the southbound exit ramp from Hwy 400 to Hwy 407 ETR from the Hwy 7 Overpass in Vaughan. After passing over the southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes, the three-lane exit ramp to Hwy 407 ETR divides into separate two-lane eastbound and westbound ramps. Although fairly common in the United States, the Hwy 400 & Hwy 407 ETR Interchange is Ontario's only four-leg, four-level directional stack interchange. Interchanges of this design feature a single exit ramp for both directions of traffic, which then split into two ramps which travel in opposite directions along the intersecting freeway. These ramps then merge with the entrance ramps coming from the opposing direction on the freeway. This interchange type has a very high vehicular capacity, and it operates at much higher speeds than those freeway-to-freeway interchanges with inner loop ramps. The first four-level directional stack interchange was built in Downtown Los Angeles in 1949, at the junction of the Harbor, Santa Ana, Pasadena and Hollywood Freeways. Los Angeles' famous "Four-Level Interchange" is a far more compact version of the interchange seen here, with all ramps and flyovers ingeniously constructed within a single multi-level freeway structure. By comparison, the Hwy 400 & Hwy 407 ETR Interchange consists of six structures, not including any of the basketweave structures on the ramp approaches. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Hwy 7 towards Woodbridge from the Hwy 400 Interchange in Vaughan. Although it might seem hard to believe today, Hwy 7 was once a two-lane rural highway which skirted the sleepy northern suburbs of Toronto. A cloverleaf interchange and overpass was built on Hwy 7 between Woodbridge and Thornhill at the proposed Toronto-Barrie Highway (Hwy 400) in 1949-1950. In the early 1960s, Hwy 7 was expanded from two to four lanes between the Hwy 400 Interchange and Woodbridge under Contract #1961-23. The highway was expanded from four to six lanes on either side of the Hwy 400 Interchange as part of the replacement of the Hwy 7 Overpass under Contract #1987-60. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of Hwy 7 facing east towards Thornhill from the Hwy 400 Interchange in Vaughan. The area around this interchange remained quite rural for several decades after the completion of Hwy 400 in the early 1950s. The area really didn't start to develop significantly until the late 1980s. In the years which have passed since I took this photo in 2010, this scene has become even more heavily-urbanized, with high-density residential condo towers now lining both sides of Hwy 7. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The on-ramps to northbound Hwy 400 from Hwy 407 ETR pass below a partial basketweave structure carrying the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes. The exit ramps from Hwy 407 ETR to Hwy 400 form the bottom level of this four-level stack interchange. The second and third levels of the interchange carry Hwy 407 ETR and Hwy 400, respectively. The top level of this interchange carries the ramps exiting from Hwy 400 to Hwy 407 ETR. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes from the Hwy 7 Overpass in Vaughan. This short Express-Collector Lane System services the Hwy 7 and Langstaff Road Interchanges. This complex freeway system was constructed during the 1990s in preparation for the opening of Hwy 407 ETR. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - A large commuter carpool lot exists in the southwest quadrant of the Hwy 400 & Hwy 7 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - The Hwy 7 Interchange also features a direct access road from the southbound Hwy 400 ramp terminal. This direct access road (Colossus Drive) passes above one of the carpool lot's internal aisles. This unusual carpool lot has separate east and west parking areas, which flank both sides of Colossus Drive. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Green guide sign within the Hwy 400 & Hwy 7 Interchange Carpool Lot, directing traffic back to the freeway. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Southern side of the Hwy 7 Overpass, facing east towards Thornhill. The replacement of this structure in 1987-1988 set the stage for the construction of the adjacent Hwy 407 ETR Interchange in the 1990s. The original 1950 structure which carried Hwy 7 over Hwy 400 had a maximum capacity of six through lanes below the structure, plus the two speed change lanes from the cloverleaf ramps. The replacement Hwy 7 structure currently accommodates a total of 16 through lanes and ramp lanes, plus the two speed change lanes from the Hwy 7 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing north along the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes from the Hwy 7 Overpass. The Hwy 400 Express-Collector Lane System was extended north from Hwy 7 to Langstaff Road in the early 1990s under Contract #1993-72. Previously, Hwy 400 had only two carriageways as opposed to four. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of the northbound Hwy 400 Express Lanes at the Hwy 7 Interchange. The ramp coming from Hwy 407 ETR can be seen joining in at right. Careful observers might note that provisions were left here for a future fourth northbound through lane on Hwy 400. Currently, Lane #4 of the northbound lanes drops through the Hwy 7 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing north along Hwy 400 from the Hwy 7 Overpass. This centreline view of Hwy 400 shows the northbound and southbound Hwy 400 Express Lanes, flanked by the exit and entrance ramps to/from Hwy 407 ETR, which in turn are flanked by the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes. The Hwy 7 Interchange we see today was built out over several contracts spanning the better part of a decade, with the ultimate interchange finally reaching completion with the opening of the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes between Hwy 7 and Langstaff Road in the Summer of 1994. Compare this photo of Hwy 400 taken in 2010 to this Historical 1951 Photo taken from the Hwy 7 Overpass, just as the initial construction of Hwy 400 was nearing completion. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of the southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes from the Hwy 7 Overpass. The Hwy 400 Express-Collector Lane System was completed in two phases during the early 1990s. Under Contract #1992-66, the northbound and southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes were completed from the vicinity of the Hwy 407 ETR Interchange northerly to a point just north of Hwy 7, with exit access to Hwy 7 only going northbound and access from Hwy 7 only going southbound. Construction of the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes was continued north from Hwy 7 beginning in 1993. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Southern side of the Portage Parkway Overpass (Site #37-1530) on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. This "mid-block" structure was built by the City of Vaughan in an effort to ease traffic congestion along parallel municipal roads. This five-span trapezoidal steel box girder structure was completed in 2010. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing east towards the new Portage Parkway Overpass at Hwy 400. This photo was taken shortly before the new mid-block crossing was opened to traffic in 2010. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Northern side of the Portage Parkway Overpass on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. This structure was built with Retained Soil System (RSS) walls at each approach fill, in order to minimize the footprint of this structure. RSS walls are expensive to construct, but they can still prove to be economical to use in certain applications. They are particularly useful in areas where land values are high or where there are design constraints which cannot be easily relocated, such as major utilities, existing roads or railways, or critical drainage features. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing west along Portage Parkway from the Hwy 400 structure, just prior to opening. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east across the Portage Parkway Overpass on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of the Hwy 7 & Hwy 400 Interchange, facing south from the Portage Parkway Overpass. The exit ramp at right carries traffic from the southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes to Hwy 7. Motorists who continue south beyond the Hwy 7 Interchange in the southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes will merge back into the Hwy 400 Express Lanes near the Hwy 407 ETR Underpass, located about 1 km to the south. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south along the southbound Hwy 400 Express Lanes from the Portage Parkway Overpass in Vaughan. Just ahead, a three-lane exit ramp diverges off to Hwy 407 ETR, while three lanes continue south along Hwy 400 towards Toronto. This design concept, known as "lane balancing", has five approaching freeway lanes feeding into six departing lanes, with the centre lane being an "either-or" lane where motorists can choose to either continue along the freeway or take the exit. Multi-lane interchanges with this design typically offer superior traffic operations to those with only "force-off" exit lanes, as they can help to reduce the number of last-minute lane changes by motorists who find themselves inadvertently caught in an exit lane. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - View of the Hwy 407 ETR ramp where it joins the northbound Hwy 400 Express Lanes, facing south from the Portage Parkway Overpass. One of the quirks of the lane balancing design concept at a freeway-to-freeway interchange is that one typically ends up with one additional lane on the departing side of the interchange just after the two freeway ramps converge, which results in an asymmetrical design. This is because a parallel lane is always needed at a freeway entrance ramp in order to have entering traffic accelerate and then merge safely. At a diverge point, it is an acceptable - and in most cases, preferable - to have one lane fork into two lanes right at the exit gore. In this instance, six lanes continue north away from the Hwy 407 ETR Interchange, while the southbound side of the highway seen in the left-hand photo has only five lanes approaching the interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - View of the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes from the Portage Parkway Overpass in Vaughan, facing south towards the Hwy 7 Interchange. From this vantage point, it is fairly clear why it was necessary to build an Express-Collector Lane System here. Due to the close proximity of the Hwy 7 and Hwy 407 ETR Interchanges along Hwy 400, there would have been a total of 8 lanes heading northbound along Hwy 400 from these two interchanges, not including the two speed change lanes from Hwy 7. As a highway's cross section gets wider, it becomes progressively more difficult to manage storm water runoff. By designing wide multi-lane freeways in an Express-Collector Lane System, engineers are provided with additional opportunities to drain storm water away via underground drainage systems along the barriers which separate the various roadways. Additionally, Express-Collector Lane Systems help to minimize traffic weaving near closely-spaced interchange ramps. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing west across the new Portage Parkway Overpass across Hwy 400 in Vaughan, just prior to opening in 2010. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - View of the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes from the Portage Parkway Overpass, facing north towards the Langstaff Road Interchange. The northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes collapse back into the Hwy 400 Express Lanes through the Langstaff Road Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing north along the northbound Hwy 400 Express Lanes from the Portage Parkway Overpass in Vaughan. With three northbound lanes coming from Toronto on Hwy 400 and three lanes entering from the ramps from Hwy 407 ETR, a total of six northbound lanes continue underneath the Portage Parkway Overpass. At the time this photo was taken in 2010, two of the lanes entering from Hwy 407 ETR dropped before Langstaff Road, while four lanes continued north towards Barrie. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Overhead freeway guide sign approaching the Langstaff Road Interchange on the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes. Like the signing along Ontario's other complex freeway systems such as those on sections of Hwy 401 and Hwy 427, blue guide signs are used for the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes to distinguish them from the green guide signs used in the Hwy 400 Express Lanes. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Overhead freeway guide signs at the end of the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes at the Langstaff Road Interchange. Beyond the exit ramp to Langstaff Road, the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes collapse into the Hwy 400 Express Lanes which brings the complex freeway system to an end. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Langstaff Road Overpass on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. This three-span concrete girder structure was completed in 1991. When the Toronto-Barrie Highway (Hwy 400) was first built in the late 1940s and early 1950s, there were no roads crossing the dual highway between Hwy 7 and the Richvale Sideroad (today's Rutherford Road). As industrial parks were built alongside Hwy 400 in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Langstaff Road was extended westerly across Hwy 400 and a new partial interchange with south-oriented ramps was constructed. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Structure identification number (Site #37-1298) and date stamp (1991) on the Langstaff Road Overpass on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south along the southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes from the Langstaff Road Overpass in Vaughan. The southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes have two basic through lanes with a continuous auxiliary lane from the eastbound-to-southbound ramp (W-S Ramp) from the Langstaff Road Interchange southerly to the adjacent Hwy 7 Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing south along Hwy 400 from the Langstaff Road Overpass in Vaughan. Note that the northbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes at left collapse just before the overpass. The southbound Hwy 400 Collector Lanes develop upstream of Langstaff Road. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing north along the northbound lanes of Hwy 400 from the Langstaff Road Overpass in Vaughan. The northbound Express-Collector Lane System has just ended at this point. As part of the construction of the Hwy 400 Express-Collector Lane System through Vaughan under Contract #1993-72, a fourth northbound lane was carried through from the vicinity of Langstaff Road northerly up to Rutherford Road, rather than the three lanes which existed here previously. Under a subsequent highway widening which took place under Contract #2000-0027, a fifth lane was carried through from Langstaff Road up to Rutherford Road. At the time of writing in March 2026, High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) carpool lanes are being constructed along Hwy 400 between the Langstaff Road Interchange and the Major Mackenzie Drive Interchange, under Contract #2024-2010. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing north along the southbound Hwy 400 Express Lanes from the Langstaff Road Overpass. The southbound Express-Collector Lane System begins just ahead. In the southbound direction, only those motorists wishing to exit to Hwy 7 must use the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes. Toronto-bound through traffic may also use the Hwy 400 Collector Lanes in order to continue south into the city. All interchanges other than Hwy 7 can be accessed from the Hwy 400 Express Lanes in the southbound direction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing north along Hwy 400 towards Barrie from the Rutherford Road Overpass in Vaughan. Note Canada's Wonderland at right, which is the Greater Toronto Area's largest amusement park. The existence of an interchange at Rutherford Road is largely owed to the construction of Canada's Wonderland. When Hwy 400 was first built in the 1940s and early 1950s, there was no interchange at the Richvale Sideroad (today's Rutherford Road). Under Contract #1979-100, a partial two-ramp interchange was built at Rutherford Road to service the proposed park. The new interchange was completed in 1980, just prior to the official opening of Canada's Wonderland in May 1981. The Rutherford Road Interchange was expanded to an "all-moves" interchange during the 1990s. All missing interchange ramps except the southbound Hwy 400 exit ramp to Rutherford Road were constructed under Contract #1992-78. Construction of the southbound exit ramp had to be deferred as it was first necessary to relocate the Maple Truck Scales, which once existed along the southbound lanes of Hwy 400 south of Major Mackenzie Drive. The Maple Truck Scales were closed and demolished under Contract #1995-13. The new southbound exit ramp to Rutherford Road was constructed after the Maple Truck Scales were removed, thus completing the interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Structure identification number (Site #37-127) and date stamp (1992) on the Rutherford Road Overpass on Hwy 400. The new Rutherford Road Interchange and overpass structure were built under Contract #1992-78. However, due to the complex construction staging required to build the new Rutherford Road Interchange, the new structure wasn't fully opened to traffic until 1994. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Southern side of the Rutherford Road Overpass on Hwy 400 in Vaughan. This bridge is a two-span trapezoidal steel box girder structure, which was built on a slightly curved alignment. The bridge had to be built this way in order to keep the original Rutherford Road Bridge open to traffic throughout construction. The new Rutherford Road Overpass was built entirely offline to the north of the original structure, and wasn't put into service until fairly late in the construction project. The old Rutherford Road Bridge, seen here in this Historical 1962 Photo, was demolished in June 1994. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing south along Hwy 400 towards Toronto from the Rutherford Road Overpass in Vaughan. The section of Hwy 400 through this interchange has been widened multiple times since the highway was initially opened to traffic in the early 1950s. As originally constructed, Hwy 400 had dual two-lane carriageways separated by a depressed grass median. The highway was expanded from four to six lanes between Finch Avenue and Major Mackenzie Drive in the early 1970s under Contract #1971-14, by filling in the centre grass median and installing a new steel box beam median barrier between the northbound and southbound lanes. The highway was widened yet again from six to eight lanes under Contract #2000-0027 between Rutherford Road and Major Mackenzie Drive, along with the replacement of the 1970s-era box beam median barrier with a new concrete "Tall Wall" median barrier. At the time of writing in March 2026, this section of Hwy 400 is being expanded once again for HOV carpool lanes under Contract #2024-2010 between Langstaff Road and Major Mackenzie Drive. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 27, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Advance guide sign for the upcoming King City Service Centre on northbound Hwy 400 near Teston Road. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Western side of the Kirby Road Underpass (Site #37-95) on Hwy 400. This single-span concrete rigid frame structure was built under Contract #1950-156 and was completed in 1951. The bridge was rehabilitated and widened along its eastern side in the early 1990s under Contract #1992-95. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Exit sign for the King City Service Centre on northbound Hwy 400. The King City Service Centre was reconstructed and re-branded as an "OnRoute" facility in 2012. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing north along Hwy 400 approaching the King City Service Centre. Note the heavy rush hour traffic on the Toronto-bound side of Hwy 400. Traffic congestion along Hwy 400 is certainly not a new phenomenon, although it was primarily a summer weekend problem until recent decades. In an effort to accommodate the high number of recreational travellers along Hwy 400, the highway was expanded from four to six lanes between Major Mackenzie Drive and King Road in the early 1970s under Contract #1971-15. The new lanes were built by backfilling the centre grass median and installing a new steel box beam median barrier between the northbound and southbound lanes. HOV Carpool Lanes were constructed along Hwy 400 from Major Mackenzie Drive to a point just north of King Road under Contract #2017-2001, with a subsequent widening of Hwy 400 by one additional non-HOV lane under Contract #2023-2014. Today, this section of the highway has 4 lanes per direction, plus an HOV lane in each direction - for a total of 10 lanes. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on April 12, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Services sign at the King City Service Centre on northbound Hwy 400 in 2011, prior to reconstruction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Main concourse building of the King City Service Centre on northbound Hwy 400 in 2011, prior to reconstruction. The King City Service Centre seen here was actually a relocation of the original facility, which sold Shell branded gasoline. The previous Shell King City Service Centre was built within the ramps at the King City Interchange in 1954. Due to its small site, the original Shell Service Centre suffered from overcrowding and a chronic lack of parking. It wasn't possible to expand that site either, as the facility was constrained within the confines of the interchange ramps themselves. The relocated King City Service Centre was built under Contract #1973-90 and opened to the public in the Summer of 1974, after which time the original Shell King City Service Centre was permanently closed. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Entrance to the main concourse building of the King City Service Centre on northbound Hwy 400. This building contained a food court, washrooms and a convenience & souvenir store. When this Service Centre was reconstructed and re-branded as an OnRoute in 2012, the food court was expanded to provide more seating capacity and a greater selection of restaurants. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Gas station pumps at the King City Service Centre. The convenience store attached to the gas station was housed in a building with a similar architectural style as the main concourse building. During the reconstruction of the King City Service Centre as an OnRoute, all buildings on the site were demolished. When this Service Centre first opened in 1974, it sold British Petroleum (BP) branded gasoline. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - View of Hwy 400 between the King-Vaughan Townline Overpass and the northbound King City Service Centre. The advance guide sign for the opposing southbound King City Service Centre can be seen in the background. Interestingly, the two Service Centres on Hwy 400 at King City were built at different times. The southbound Hwy 400 Service Centre was built first in 1965, in an effort to alleviate chronic overcrowding at the tiny original Shell King City Service Centre. When the Shell Service Centre first opened in 1954, it was utilized by traffic in both directions along Hwy 400. Motorists on the southbound side of the highway could access the Service Centre by exiting at the King City Sideroad (today's King Road) and use the interchange ramps to access the Service Centre on the northbound side. For a number of years thereafter, the Shell Service Centre at the King City Interchange continued to operate, but it served northbound traffic only. The circular hut in the foreground is one of the Ministry of Transportation's permanent traffic counting stations. These stations collect traffic data continuously 24 hours a day, 365 days per year at strategic study "screen lines" throughout the provincial highway system. These permanent stations differ from the more commonly seen seasonal traffic counting stations, which are used intermittently to collect seasonal traffic data during a specified period only. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Northern side of the King-Vaughan Townline Overpass on Hwy 400. This single-span concrete rigid frame girder structure was built under Contract #1960-276 and was completed in 1961. This was among the later structures built on the Toronto-Barrie section of Hwy 400. Prior to the construction of this overpass in 1961, King-Vaughan Townline crossed Hwy 400 via an at-grade intersection. This was one of the handful of at-grade intersections either grade-separated or closed along Hwy 400 during the early 1960s. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Southern side of the King-Vaughan Townline Overpass (Site #37-271) on Hwy 400. This structure is situated about 2 km south of the King Road Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Facing north along Hwy 400 towards Barrie from the King-Vaughan Townline Underpass in 2011, prior to widening. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south along Hwy 400 towards Toronto from the King-Vaughan Townline Underpass in 2011, prior to widening. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - King-Vaughan Townline Overpass on Hwy 400, facing east towards Richmond Hill. This structure was demolished and replaced as part of the widening of Hwy 400 for HOV lanes under Contract #2017-2001. The replacement bridge was designed to accommodate a widened 10-lane Hwy 400 below the structure. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on October 4, 2011 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing north along Hwy 400 approaching the King Road Interchange. Note the newly-completed directional ramp in the southwest quadrant at left. The advance construction of this ramp was necessary so that Hwy 400 traffic could be detoured through the ramp during the demolition of the old King Road Overpass. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Ground-mounted freeway exit guide sign for the upcoming King Road Interchange on northbound Hwy 400. Ground-mounted freeway exit guide signs are becoming rather rare on the southernmost portion of Hwy 400, as the MTO slowly converts the highway's guide signs to overhead truss-mounted exit signs. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - New King Road Overpass as seen from the northbound Hwy 400 exit ramp. The old 1950 concrete rigid frame overpass can be seen in the background. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Old King Road Overpass, two days before the structure was demolished. The approaches have been pulled back in preparation for the bridge removal stage. The King Road Interchange was originally built in 1949-1950, and was reconstructed under Contract #2008-2018. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - With the approach fill removed, the angled wing walls of the King Road Overpass and the T-beam behind the bridge abutment have been uncovered. The original King Road Overpass was built under Contract #1948-83 (structural steel) and Contract #1949-63 (general contract) and was completed in 1950. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Old and new King Road Overpasses side by side. Once the old 1950 structure is removed, the second half of the new structure will be completed in its place. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The old 1950 structure was initially designed to cross over a four-lane freeway with a depressed grass median. The grass median was backfilled in 1971 in order to permit the construction of one additional freeway lane per direction, so the bridge then crossed over six lanes of traffic (three lanes per direction). The new King Road Overpass on Hwy 400 has room for two additional lanes in each direction on the freeway below. One of the new lanes on Hwy 400 will be an HOV carpool lane. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Approaching the Old King Road Overpass on southbound Hwy 400, two days before the structure was demolished. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Demolition equipment is lined up along the shoulder of Hwy 400 in preparation for the removal of the old King Road Overpass. As with most other recent Ontario bridge replacement projects, the old structure will be demolished in a single night. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on February 19, 2010 - © Cameron Bevers)

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Right - Overhead freeway guide signs on the northbound lanes of Hwy 400 at the reconstructed King Road Interchange. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on April 12, 2012 - © Cameron Bevers)