Ontario Highway 401 Photographs - Page 16 - History of Ontario's Kings Highways

Left - Facing west along Hwy 401 west of Oxford Road 3 near Drumbo. The MTO began widening this section of Hwy 401 to a six lane cross section during 2006.
(Photograph taken on April 2, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 401 towards Cambridge west of Oxford Road 3.
(Photograph taken on April 2, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing west along Hwy 401 towards Woodstock, just west of the Nith River Bridge.
(Photograph taken on April 2, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 401 towards the Nith River Bridge. Until recently, this four lane section of Hwy 401 between Cambridge and Woodstock was one of the last original sections of the highway remaining between Toronto and London. Most of Hwy 401 between Toronto and London has been rebuilt and widened to six lanes since 1988. This section of Hwy 401 was widened to six lanes in 2006-2007.
(Photograph taken on April 2, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Aerial view of the Hwy 401 and Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange in Kitchener, facing southwest.
(Photograph taken on June 22, 2005 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Aerial view of the Hwy 401 and Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange, facing south towards Blair.
(Photograph taken on June 22, 2005 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Close-up of the Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange. Up until 1990, New Dundee Road intersected Homer Watson Boulevard at the ramp terminal in the foreground. New Dundee Road was realigned, but the trees which used to line the old road are still visible in this aerial photo just to the right of the ramp terminal. This interchange was completely reconstructed in 2006-2007 to improve the substandard ramp geometry and to provide a wider overpass across Hwy 401.
(Photograph taken on June 22, 2005 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Aerial view of Hwy 401 facing east towards the Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange in Kitchener.
(Photograph taken on June 22, 2005 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Aerial view of the Hwy 401 and Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange, facing northeast.
(Photograph taken on June 22, 2005 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Aerial view of the Hwy 401 and Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange, facing north towards Kitchener.
(Photograph taken on June 22, 2005 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Grading for a new directional ramp at Homer Watson Boulevard and Hwy 401 in Kitchener.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - The new directional ramp will carry traffic from Southbound Homer Watson Boulevard to Westbound Hwy 401, eliminating the congested left turn that was previously required. The new overpass under construction in the background carries a realignment of New Dundee Road across the directional ramp, essentially restoring New Dundee Road to its original pre-1990 alignment.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Future New Dundee Road Overpass at the Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange on Hwy 401.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - The new directional ramp curves and meets Hwy 401 beyond the New Dundee Road Overpass.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Eastern abutment and wing wall of the New Dundee Road Overpass before being back-filled with earth.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - North side of the New Dundee Road Overpass. The new structure will be a concrete rigid frame bridge.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Grading for the New Dundee Road realignment at the Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange, facing east.
(Photograph taken on June 10, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing east along Hwy 401 approaching the Doon Valley Pedestrian Bridge in Kitchener.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The Doon Valley Pedestrian Bridge was completed in 2007. This bridge lies between the Hwy 8 and Homer Watson Boulevard Interchanges and is the only pedestrian bridge across Hwy 401 in the Kitchener area. This structure forms an important link in the Trans-Canada Trail between Cambridge and Kitchener. The pedestrian bridge is enclosed on all sides with a steel mesh screen to discourage bridge users from throwing objects onto the highway below. Fortunately, this screening was incorporated into the bridge design in such a way that the bridge still remains quite attractive.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Date stamp and structure identification number on the Doon Valley Pedestrian Bridge across Hwy 401.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing south across the Doon Valley Pedestrian Bridge over Hwy 401.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Facing north across the Doon Valley Pedestrian Bridge over Hwy 401.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Facing east along Hwy 401 towards the Grand River Bridge and the Hwy 8 Interchange from the Doon Valley Pedestrian Bridge.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - The section of Hwy 401 between Homer Watson Boulevard and Hwy 8 was widened to six lanes in 2001.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Freeway exit sign on eastbound Hwy 401 for King Street (Hwy 8 West) and Shantz Hill Road (Hwy 8 East) in Cambridge. The ramps at this interchange are in a "Parclo A-B" configuration, with separate exit ramps to King Street and Shantz Hill Road from eastbound Hwy 401. However, there is only one off-ramp from westbound Hwy 401, which serves both directions of traffic on Hwy 8. Jurisdiction over Hwy 8 in the vicinity of the Hwy 401 Interchange was transferred from the province to the Regional Municipality of Waterloo in 1997. The Hwy 8 Bypass is still under provincial jurisdiction. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Overlooking the Grand River Bridge on Hwy 401, facing west towards the Homer Watson Boulevard Interchange.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Eastbound Hwy 401 Bridge across the Grand River in Kitchener. Structure completed in 1960.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - View below the dual Grand River Bridges on Hwy 401 in Kitchener. Both of these bridges are steel plate girder structures, with a length of 778 feet (237 metres) each. They were built with unusually wide shoulders, which allowed for the freeway to be widened to six lanes without any significant reconstruction of the bridges.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Westbound Hwy 401 Bridge across the Grand River in Kitchener. Structure completed in 1960.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Northern side of the Grand River Bridges on Hwy 401 in Kitchener. They are the longest structures on Hwy 401 west of Toronto.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - Hwy 401 climbs a significant grade as it crosses the Grand River in Kitchener, meaning that the eastern abutment of the Grand River Bridge is substantially higher than the western abutment. This grade change discouraged the construction of a freeway-to-freeway ramp connection between Eastbound Hwy 401 and the Hwy 8 Freeway into Kitchener during the latter highway's construction in the 1980s.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Crossing the Grand River Bridge in Kitchener on Westbound Hwy 401.
(Photograph taken on May 18, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Left - The Grand River is the largest river that Hwy 401 crosses west of the Greater Toronto Area.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)

Right - Approaching the Hwy 8 Interchange on Hwy 401 in Cambridge. There is no direct access to the Kitchener-bound Hwy 8 Bypass from eastbound Hwy 401. At this time, access between the two freeways is provided via King Street (Hwy 8). Access to the eastern leg of Hwy 8 to Hamilton is provided via Shantz Hill Road in Cambridge. Plans are being developed to reconstruct this interchange to allow for a proper freeway-to-freeway connection between the Hwy 8 Bypass and Hwy 401 from both directions. See an Enlarged Photo Here.
(Photograph taken on May 24, 2009 - © Cameron Bevers)