Ontario Highway 532

Highway 532 shield

Highway 532
Route information
Length: 14.2 km[1] (8.8 mi)
Existed: 1974 – present
Major junctions
South end:  Highway 556 near Glendale
North end: Christina Mine Road
Location
Divisions: Algoma District
Towns: Searchmont
Villages: Wabos
Highway system
← Highway 531Highway 533 →

Secondary Highway 532, commonly referred to as Highway 532, is a provincially maintained secondary highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The route connects several mining and milling towns in Unorganized Algoma District, notably Searchmont. The route is remote, ending at a mine access road 14.2 kilometres (8.8 mi) north of Highway 556, its southern terminus.

A former designation of Highway 532 travelled through Muskoka along the Parry Sound Colonization Road and was redesignated as Highway 141 in 1974. At that time, the present route was established following what was until then a segment of Highway 556. It has remained unchanged since then.

Route description

The southern terminus of the highway is at Highway 556, 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) south of Searchmont. It is the only highway that passes through the community and connects with the entrance to the Searchmont Resort Ski Area. Just north of the town, the paved surface ends as the highway becomes a rough, hilly dirt road with blind corners. The highway passes through the hamlet of Wabos, and approximately 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) to the northeast comes upon a left-hand turn where a sign indicates that "Highway 532 ends".[2] The route is 14.2 kilometres (8.8 mi) long.[1]

History

The current route of Highway 532 was first assumed by the Department of Highways in early 1956, along with several dozen other secondary highways. It was likely maintained as a development road prior to that. It formed the final 14.2 kilometres (8.8 mi) of Highway 556.[3][4]

The original use of the Highway 532 designation was in southern Ontario. In 1956, this route was designated along the Parry Sound Colonization Road between Highway 69 at Hayes Corners and the former route of Highway 11 at Falkenburg, north of Bracebridge. When the Highway 11 bypass east of Bracebridge was completed and the old route decommissioned in 1958, Highway 532 was extended south through Bracebridge to Muskoka Falls.[5] The route remained this way until January 1, 1973, when the District Municipality of Muskoka was formed. Unlike most other secondary highways in the new municipality, the route was not decommissioned entirely, but rerouted southeast of Raymond. Instead of travelling south through Beatrice, Falkenburg and Bracebrige, the route continued east along what was Highway 516, passing through Utterson and ending at Highway 11.[6]

This new routing was short-lived; in 1974, the entirety of the highway was upgraded to a King's Highway and redesignated Highway 141. Highway 532 assumed its current routing through Algoma that same year,[7] and has remained unchanged since then.[2]

Major intersections

The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 532. The entirety of the route is located within Algoma District.[2]

Location km[1] Destinations Notes
Unorganized Algoma District 0.0  Highway 556 – Heyden, Glendale
14.2 Christina Mine Road
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

Route map: Bing

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2007). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Retrieved April 28, 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ontario Back Road Atlas (Map). Cartography by MapArt. Peter Heiler. 2010. p. 84. § X–Y94. ISBN 978-1-55198-226-7.
  3. ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by C.P. Robins. Ontario Department of Highways. 1956. § O31.
  4. ↑ "Ontario Secondary Roads Now Designated 500, 600" 112 (33,119). The Globe and Mail. February 4, 1956. p. 4. Two new Ontario road numbers appear on the province's 1956 official road map which will be ready for distribution next week. The new numbers are the 500 and 600 series and designate hundreds of miles of secondary roads which are wholly maintained by the Highways Department. More than 100 secondary roads will have their own numbers and signs this year. All of these secondary roads were taken into the province's main highways system because they form important connecting links with the King's Highways
  5. ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by C.P. Robins. Ontario Department of Highways. 1958. § P33–Q34.
  6. ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by Photogrammetry Office. Ministry of Transportation and Communications. 1973. § F22–G23.
  7. ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by Photogrammetry Department. Ministry of Transportation and Communications. 1978/79. § P10, D23–24. Check date values in: |date= (help)