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Highway 404
Route information
Maintained by Ministry of Transportation of Ontario
Length	36.8 km (22.9 mi)
Existed	1977–present
Major junctions
South end	Highway 401 / DVP – Toronto
Major intersections	Highway 401 – Markham  Regional Road 7 (Highway 7) – Richmond Hill
North end	Regional Road 19 (Green Lane) – East Gwillimbury
Location
Country	Canada
Province	Ontario
Highway system
Ontario provincial highways Current Former 400-series
← Highway 403 → Highway 405

King's Highway 404, also known as Highway 404 and colloquially as The four-oh-four, is a 400-series highway in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting Highway 401 and the Don Valley Parkway in Toronto with Newmarket. The controlled access freeway also connects with Highway 407 in Richmond Hill.It currently serves Toronto, Markham, Richmond Hill, Aurora & Newmarket.

Route description

Running parallel to Highway 400 approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) to the east, Highway 404 extends 36 km (22 mi) on a north–south orientation between Highway 401 and Green Lane. There are 14 interchanges along its length, mostly of the Parclo A4 configuration. Exit numbers on the freeway start at 17, suggesting that the Don Valley Parkway was included in distance calculations when signing the exits; there are no exit numbers posted on the Don Valley Parkway.

Officially, the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (MTO) jurisdiction over the freeway begins as the opposing directions of travel diverge south of the Highway 401 interchange. From the eastbound 401 lanes, two lanes northbound are separated until past Sheppard Avenue. One lane merges with two lanes from the northbound DVP. From the westbound 401, one lane merges with the northbound lanes, making a total of five lanes northbound to Sheppard. The southbound 404 provides two lanes southbound to the DVP, one lane from the HOV southbound lanes, and two lanes separated by a barrier from the rest for access to the 401 east and westbound. To the east of the 404, is the Consumers Road office park. To the west of the 404, and just north of Sheppard Avenue is the large Fairview Mall, which has its own off-ramps connected to the southbound 404.

The highway continues directly north along the old Woodbine Avenue right-of-way to just south of Steeles Avenue, where it diverges to the west before continuing north. From just north of Sheppard, a northbound HOV lane is present alongside the centre median. Southbound, the HOV lane continues along the full length of Steeles to the 401, exiting to the DVP or the 401 westbound. Alongside the 404 to the east is an industrial warehouse and commercial office area, while on the west is a suburban subdivision of North York. Northbound, the highway is six lanes wide from Sheppard until Finch, where one diverges onto an off-ramp. The sixth lane re-emerges north of Finch. Southbound, the 404 is six lanes wide from Steeles south to Sheppard Avenue.

At Steeles Avenue, the freeway enters the Region of York. To the east are industrial units, while on the west are residential suburbs. This land-use persists north to the Highway 407 ETR interchange, a multi-level stack interchange with two flyovers. North of Highway 407, the freeway crosses Highway 7, where the HOV lanes transition to standard lanes. The freeway passes west of Buttonville Airport and interchanges with 16th Avenue. The highway narrows and the central barrier ends; a grass median takes its place between the opposing lanes. The land-use density continues to drop, with the appearance of some open spaces and farms interspersed with industrial and commercial buildings. At 19th Avenue, the land-use is agricultural on both sides. Immediately south of Stouffville Road, the highway curves to the east before proceeding north.

North of Bethesda Road, the highway crosses through a green space area. Two small lakes are present on either side of the road. The larger, on the east is Simeon Lake. North of Aurora Road/ Wellington Street, the highway reduces in width to four lanes, which is its configuration north to East Gwillumbury, where the highway ends at Green Lane, York Regional Road 19.

History

Initial construction

A freeway east of Highway 11 was in the works as early as 1954, when the province extended Highway 48 south from Port Bolster. A large cloverleaf interchange was constructed with the Toronto Bypass, and plans formulated for a dual highway around the east side of Lake Simcoe, connecting with Highway 11 near Orillia or Gravenhurst. This route was dropped when Metropolitan Toronto began planning for the northern extension of the DVP in 1957, as subdivisions encroached upon Woodbine Avenue north of Highway 401. The six-lane expressway was to follow the alignment of Woodbine from its southern terminus at Lawrence Avenue to north of Steeles Avenue, where the Department of Highways (DOH) would continue the road as a "new King's Highway".

In 1959, the DOH announced that they would construct and maintain the new route once the DVP was completed to Highway 401 and designate it Highway 404. Planning for the new freeway began in 1973, and construction started in March 1976 with the awarding of a C$6.9 million contract. This contract included construction of the Finch Avenue interchange and 4.5 km (2.8 mi) of six-lane freeway. Shortly thereafter, on April 20, Ernest Avenue and Van Horne Avenue were closed to traffic at Woodbine. The first section of Highway 404 between Highway 401 and Steeles Avenue opened in late 1977, including the flyover ramp from southbound Woodbine Avenue. The freeway was seperated by a grass median with a steel beam acting as a barrier between the lanes. Construction north of Toronto proceeded quickly, with the section from Steeles to Highway 7 opening in mid-1980. By the end of 1980, the freeway reached as far north as Major Mackenzie Drive. The next extension to Stouffville Road (then known as the Gormley Side Road) was opened as a four lane freeway during the second week of December, 1981.

The section of Highway 404 north of Stouffville Road was the subject of considerable controversy when work began to clear the route on May 15, 1981 before the completion of an environmental assessment. The Ministry of Transportation and Communications was charged with violating the newly enacted Environmental Assessment Act, which it contested came into effect after construction of the Highway 404 extension had begun. Minister James Snow was charged with violating the act, and called upon to resign. The Minister did not resign, but paid a $3,500 fine. Despite the issues surrounding it, the extension between Stouffville Road and Bloomington Road was opened ceremoniously on the morning of August 10, 1982.

Construction on the segment north of Bloomington to Aurora Sideroad was already in progress by this point. It was opened to traffic in late September 1985. The 6.5 km (4.0 mi) section from Aurora Road to Davis Drive opened on October 24, 1989 at 8:30 am, costing C$22.1 million, ending the continuous construction program undertaken since 1973 at a cost of $83.3 million.

Expansion

Studies and environmental into various extensions began immediately, while Highway 404 ended at Davis Drive (York Regional Road 31). It would take over a decade for any northward progression to take place. In the interim period, work went into expanding the six lane freeway through Toronto and Markham. In early 1998, the MTO announced plans for two contracts to widen Highway 404 south of Highway 7. The first contract converted the grass median into an additional lane in each direction with a central barrier between them. High-mast lighting was also installed, replacing the unique luminaires used on the freeway. The second contract resulted in an additional lane in each direction on the outside of the existing lanes.

On August 28, 2000, the MTO announced a three contract project to widen and extend Highway 404. The first contract added an addition lane in each direction into the grass median from Major Mackenzie Drive to Bloomington Road. A second contract then extended those lanes north to Aurora Sideroad. The third contract called for an extension of the freeway from Davis Drive to Green Lane and the reconstruction of Green Lane into a four-laned arterial road between Leslie Street and Woodbine Avenue. The extension to Green Lane opened on February 8, 2002.

High occupancy lanes (HOV) similar to those on Highway 403 in Peel Region have been added to the 404, from Highway 7 at the Beaver Creek crossing to the interchange with Highway 401 and the DVP; further space in the grass median exists for their extension. The HOV lanes are the leftmost lanes of the freeway, with a buffer strip (not a concrete barrier or guardrail) to separate them from the regular lanes.

Construction of the southbound HOV lane began in early 2004 and was completed in December 2005. This project included a curved underpass tunnel to the Highway 401 westbound, and collector lanes were added to reduce the weaving from incoming Sheppard Avenue traffic and outgoing traffic to Highway 401. South of the Sheppard Avenue overpasses, the HOV lane becomes two lanes, with the leftmost lane leading to 401 westbound collector lanes via a curved tunnel, while the right HOV lane traffic merges with Don Valley Parkway southbound traffic.

Work on the northbound HOV lane began shortly afterwards and was completed in July 2007, extending from north of Sheppard Avenue to Highway 7. At 8:30 AM EST on Monday, July 23, 2007, the northbound HOV lane opened to the public.

The Highway 7 overpasses currently have an additional lane which is currently blocked off but will allow for northward expansion of the HOV lanes.

Future

On May 16, 2006 the MTO announced plans to extend the highway 15 kilometres further north from Green Lane to Ravenshoe Road at the south end of Keswick. The first contracts were awarded later that year for the construction of the northbound bridge over Green Lane, followed by two structures over Mount Albert Road, west of Woodbine Avenue, begun in late 2008 and completed in 2009. Completion is planned sometime beyond 2011. Grading and paving operations are scheduled to begin in the summer.

Long term plans call for Highway 404 to be extended to Highway 12, between Sunderland and Beaverton. This extension would follow a new alignment to Port Bolster, east of which the freeway would incorporate the existing two lanes of Highway 48.

The extension has drawn criticism from environmental groups who claim it will only serve to accelerate urban sprawl north of Toronto.

Exit list

Division	Location	km	Exit	Destinations	Notes
Highway 404 continues south as the Don Valley Parkway
Toronto		0.0	17	Highway 401 and Don Valley Parkway
			18	Sheppard Avenue	Access from southbound 404 to Fairview Mall and from Fairview Mall to southbound 404
			20	Finch Avenue
			22	Steeles Avenue /  Regional Road 8 (Woodbine Avenue)	Northbound exit and southbound entrance from Woodbine Avenue, full access interchange with Steeles Avenue
York Region	Markham
			25	Highway 407
			27	Regional Road 7	Formerly  Highway 7
	Markham – Richmond Hill boundary
			29	Regional Road 73 (16th Avenue)
			31	Regional Road 25 (Major Mackenzie Road)
			33	Regional Road 49 (Elgin Mills Road)
	Richmond Hill – Whitchurch-Stouffville		37	Regional Road 14 (Stouffville Road)
			41	Regional Road 40 (Bloomington Road)
	Whitchurch-Stouffville – Aurora
			45	Regional Road 15 (Aurora Road)
	Whitchurch-Stouffville – Newmarket		49	Regional Road 74 (Vivian Road / Mulock Road)
	East Gwillimbury		51	Regional Road 31 (Davis Drive)
			53	Regional Road 19 (Green Lane)
				Regional Road 77 (Queensville Sideroad)
				Bradford Bypass	Possible interchange location for proposed freeway
				Regional Road 8 / Regional Road 32 (Woodbine Avenue / Ravenshoe Road)
Closed •      Under construction
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

External links

• Canada NewsWire Press Release
• Google Maps: Highway 404 route

References

Notes

1. This demarcation line is visible on the highway as a change in pavement quality and the use of different high-mast lighting

Sources

1. Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2004). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Government of Ontario. Retrieved February 26, 2010.
2. Don Valley Parkway Extension, Highway 401 to Steeles Avenue (Report). Desjardines. 1957.
3. "Summary Report of Department Operations". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1960. p. 7.
4. ^ Dexter, Brian (October 25, 1989). "Ontario Studies Plan to Extend Highway 404 Farther North". The Toronto Star. p. A8. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help)
5. "Headache on the 401". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. May 4, 1976. p. 5.
6. "Road-Building Closes 2 Streets". The Toronto Star. April 14, 1976. p. B1. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help)
7. Stevens, Victoria (January 21, 1981). "York Councillors Fly Over Their Region's Traffic Chaos". The Toronto Star. p. A29. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help)
8. "Ministries at Loggerheads Over Extension of Highway". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. May 26, 1981. p. 5.
9. Keating, John (August 3, 1982). "404 extension opens Aug.10". The Toronto Star. p. 11. The public is cordially invited to attend the OFFICIAL OPENING of Highway 404, from Gormley Road to Bloomington Side Road on Tuesday, August 10, 1982 at 11:00 a.m. on the southbound lanes of Highway 404 at Bloomington Side Road. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help); Cite uses generic title (help)
10. "New Stretch of 404 to Open". The Toronto Star. September 10, 1985. p. NR12. Highway 404 should be open to the Aurora Sideroad by the end of September, a Ministry of Transportation official said last week.... Tenders for the next and final stage of the highway from the Aurora Sideroad to Davis Drive in Newmarket will be called in December and awarded in January the spokesman said. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help)
11. The Toronto Star. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
12. Van Rijn, Nicholaas (August 29, 2000). "Longer, Wider Highway 404 In the Works". The Toronto Star. p. B3. {{cite news}}: |section= ignored (help)
13. Casey, Patrick (February 8, 2002). "Drivers have more options in northern York Region after improvements to Green Lane East and Highway 404". News. Regional Municipality of York. Retrieved April 22, 2011. York Region drivers can now access Green Lane East between Leslie Street and Woodbine Avenue in the Town of East Gwillimbury. The Regional Municipality of York today opened the stretch of road in tandem with the completion of a 2.9 kilometre extension of Highway 404 from Davis Drive and Green Lane East.
14. Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (May 24, 2007). "Ontario's High Occupancy Vehicle Lane Network: Summary of the Plan for the 400-Series Highways in the Greater Golden Horseshoe". Retrieved February 25, 2010.
17. Mount Albert interchange bridge date stamp
18. "Highway Expansion projects". Government of Ontario. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
19. Winfield, Mark (April 13, 2006). "404 Extension a Highway to Sprawl, Environmental Groups Charge". The Pembina Institute. Retrieved July 10, 2010. {{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)

• 400-series highways in Ontario