Present Day Highway 401 Photographs (Pickering to Ajax)
Left - Aerial view of the Westney Road Interchange on Hwy 401 in Ajax, facing south
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Close-up of the Westney Road Interchange on Hwy 401 in Ajax, facing south. This new interchange was built in the late 1980s to replace an outdated 1930s interchange at nearby Church Street.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Mark Mirrlees)
Left - Aerial view of new Hwy 401 & Salem Road Interchange, facing southwest. This new interchange was completed in 2003, replacing the outdated Harwood Avenue Interchange which was constructed in the 1940s.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Aerial view of Salem Road at new Hwy 401 Interchange, facing south. The new Salem Road Interchange features longer multi-lane exit ramps, allowing for higher turning movement capacity. One of the greatest problems at the former Harwood Interchange was its inability to accommodate queuing caused by the traffic signals at the ramp terminals.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Aerial view of former Harwood Avenue Interchange at Hwy 401, facing southeast
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Aerial view of Hwy 401 facing east towards Harwood Avenue Overpass
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Aerial view of former Harwood Avenue Interchange at Hwy 401, facing northeast
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Aerial view of Harwood Avenue, facing north towards Hwy 401
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Aerial view of former Harwood Avenue Interchange at Hwy 401, facing northwest
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Aerial view of new Salem Road Interchange at Hwy 401, facing northwest
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Close-up of Harwood Avenue Interchange removal on Hwy 401 in Ajax. Only traces of the old diamond ramps on the southern side of Hwy 401 and the partial cloverleaf ramps on the northern side of Hwy 401 can be seen in this photo.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Aerial view of Harwood Avenue Overpass reconstruction. A new structure was built to replace two outdated Hwy 401 overpasses and an old grade separation over the adjacent railway. This work was carried out in conjunction with the construction of the new Salem Road Interchange.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Aerial view of Harwood Avenue Overpass reconstruction facing north along Harwood Avenue. Note the detour of Harwood Avenue traffic onto the old northbound Harwood Avenue structure during the reconstruction.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Aerial view of Hwy 401 facing west from new Salem Road Interchange. The new interchange is immediately adjacent to the former Harwood Avenue Interchange in Ajax.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Aerial view of Salem Road & Harwood Avenue at Hwy 401, facing southwest
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Close-up view of Salem Road Interchange at Hwy 401, facing south
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Mark Mirrlees)
Left - Former Harwood Avenue off-ramp from Hwy 401 Eastbound. This ramp was closed in December 2003.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Site of former Harwood off-ramp from Hwy 401 Eastbound, after reconstruction
(Photograph taken on July 8, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Facing west along Hwy 401 from southbound Harwood Avenue Overpass in Ajax
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Facing west along Hwy 401 from Harwood Avenue Overpass after reconstruction
(Photograph taken on July 8, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Facing east along Hwy 401 from northbound Harwood Avenue Overpass in Ajax
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Facing east along Hwy 401 from Harwood Avenue Overpass after reconstruction
(Photograph taken on July 8, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Hwy 401 widening project underway between Salem Road and Harwood Avenue in Ajax. The removal of the partial cloverleaf ramps in the northeast quadrant allowed for a substantial portion of the widening to take place without much additional property acquisition.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - The southbound Harwood Avenue Overpass was among the earliest bridges ever built on Hwy 401. This structure predates the Town of Ajax itself, having been completed in 1941. At that time, Harwood Avenue was merely an access road to Defence Industries Limited. This bridge was demolished on February 22, 2004, as part of a multi-year project to widen Hwy 401 through Ajax.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Close-up of the 1941 Harwood Avenue Overpass, showing sidewalk extension added in 1980s
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Eastern side of southbound (1941) Harwood Avenue Overpass over Hwy 401, looking north. Both of the dual Harwood Avenue Overpasses were demolished in 2004 in order to widen the highway underneath.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Eastern side of southbound Harwood Avenue Overpass, looking south across Hwy 401
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Western side of northbound Harwood Avenue Overpass. The northbound structure was completed in 1961, and it was demolished in August 2004.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Looking north along Harwood Avenue, across southbound (1941) structure
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Looking south along Harwood Avenue, towards dual overpasses across Hwy 401
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Looking north along Harwood Avenue. Note the partially removed traffic signals at the ramps to Hwy 401. The southern half of the old Harwood Interchange was a diamond configuration.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Looking west along Hwy 401 towards dual Harwood Avenue Overpasses. Note the demolished ramps in the foreground. These ramps were designed along with the rest of Hwy 401 (Hwy 2A) in the 1930s, and were of a much lower standard than the interchanges seen today.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Facing west along Hwy 401, showing eastern side of northbound (1961) Harwood Avenue Overpass
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Site of former on-ramp to Eastbound Hwy 401 from Harwood Avenue. The old ramp was closed to allow construction of the adjacent Salem Road Interchange to proceed.
(Photograph taken on July 8, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Dual Harwood Avenue overpasses over Hwy 401, looking north. The southbound structure (left) was completed in 1941, while the northbound structure (right) was completed in 1961.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Right - Demolished Harwood Avenue ramps in the northeast interchange quadrant. When the Harwood Avenue Interchange was designed in the 1930s, only a small amount of traffic was expected to use this interchange daily. As traffic volumes grew over the past few decades, the ramps at the Harwood Avenue Interchange began to exhibit serious deficiencies, particularly at peak periods. The relocated Ajax interchange at Salem Road, which opened in December 2003, has significantly longer multi-lane ramps, which can accommodate far more vehicles during peak periods.
(Photograph taken on December 9, 2003 - © Cameron Bevers)
Left - Reconstruction of the Harwood Avenue Overpass in May 2004. Note the 1961 span in the background, which was closed once the first stage of the new Harwood Avenue bridge was completed.
(Photograph taken on May 30, 2004 - © Mark Mirrlees)
Right - Completed Harwood Avenue Overpass, facing south at Hwy 401. The new overpass is a huge improvement over the former interchange setup. While it is unfortunate to see Hwy 401 lose yet another historical 1940s-era interchange, the Harwood Avenue reconstruction project was desperately needed in order to accommodate the growing traffic volumes on the highway.
(Photograph taken on July 8, 2006 - © Cameron Bevers)
