Ontario Highway 58
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| Route information | ||||||||||
| Maintained by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario | ||||||||||
| Length: | 15.5 km[1] (9.6 mi) | |||||||||
| Existed: | 1935 – present | |||||||||
| Southern segment | ||||||||||
| Length: | 7.2 km (4.5 mi) | |||||||||
| South end: |
 Highway 3 in Port Colborne | |||||||||
| North end: | Highway 58A in Welland | |||||||||
| Northern segment | ||||||||||
| Length: | 8.3 km (5.2 mi) | |||||||||
| South end: |
 Highway 20 near Allanburg | |||||||||
| North end: |
 Highway 406 in Thorold | |||||||||
| Highway system | ||||||||||
<td width="100%" align=center" colspan="3" style="padding:0;vertical-align:middle;text-align:center">Current highways
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King's Highway 58, commonly referred to as Highway 58, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. The route is divided into two segments. The southern segment travels from Niagara Regional Road 3, formerly Highway 3, in Port Colborne, to the Highway 58A junction in the southern end of Welland; the northern segment begins at Highway 20 near Allanburg and travels north and west to a large junction with Highway 406 at the St. Catharines – Thorold boundary. The entire route is located within the Regional Municipality of Niagara.
The history of Highway 58 is tumultuous due to various relocation projects resulting from the construction of the fourth Welland Canal and Highway 406. Prior to 1998, Highway 58 was continuous and travelled through the west side of Welland. However, the province transferred the central section to the City of Welland.
Route description
The segment between Highway 406 in Thorold and Niagara Road 57 east of Thorold is a four-lane freeway. It also contains the Thorold Tunnel, one of the three tunnels under the Welland Canal. The remaining segments vary between a two-lane rural highway and four-lane urban roadway.[2] Overall, the highway is 15.5 km (9.6 mi) in length, with a 18.1-kilometre (11.2 mi) gap separating the two sections.[1]
The southern section of Highway 58 begins at a junction with the former Highway 3 in the city of Port Colborne, several kilometres north of Lake Erie. South of this intersection, the road continues as Niagara Regional Road 58 to Killaly Street.[3] Proceeding north, the highway, known locally as West Side Road, passes through the suburbs of Port Colborne, north of which it skirts the eastern edge of the Wainfleet Bog, one of the few remaining habitats of the Massasauga Rattlesnake.[4] West of Dain City, Highway 58 crosses the Port Colborne – Welland boundary at Forks Road, a grade-separated intersection. The route crosses several rail lines over the next 2 kilometres (1.2 mi), before ending at Highway 58A (Humberstone Road) at the southern edge of the built up area of Welland.[3]
The northern section of Highway 58 begins at an intersection with the western terminus of Highway 20, approximately 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) east of Highway 406. South of this intersection, the road that carries Highway 58 continues as Niagara Regional Road 82, whereas west of the intersection the road that carries Highway 20, Lundy's Lane, continues as Niagara Regional Road 58 through Allanburg. Highway 58 proceeds north, at first along an established concession road, before branching to the east on its own alignment known as Davis Road. The road crosses several flooded valleys that form part of the Welland Canal. before arriving at Thorold Stone Road, at which point Highway 58 turns west and enters the Thorold Tunnel, descending beneath the canal.[3]
At the western end of the tunnel, Highway 58 emerges as a divided highway in Thorold. It interchanges with Pine Street; the eastbound on-ramp from Pine Street features a stop sign and no merging lane prior to entering the Thorold Tunnel. West of Pine Street, the route passes beneath a railway and curves slightly southwest. It interchanges with Collier Street, gradually curving to the northwest and passing beneath Richmond Street. Highway 58 ends at a complicated interchange with both St. Davids Road as well as Highway 406 on the edge of the Niagara Escarpment.[3]
History
The first portion of the route of what became Highway 58 was assumed on September 4, 1935. Although only a short stub travelling south from Main Street in Welland (then Highway 3A), it connected to a road owned by the Welland Canal Authority (WCA) travelling along the east side of the old canal,[5] now known by various names including Barber Drive, Canal Road, Kingsway, and Canal Bank Street.[3] Initially unnumbered, the route was extended to Port Colborne and St. Catharines on October 6, 1937,[6] and by then had been given the designation of Highway 58. The highway now began at Highway 3 in Port Colborne and travelled to Welland along the east side of the canal, and thereafter north along Niagara Street, the Merrittville Highway and Glenridge Road (Niagara Regional Road 50) to Highway 8 in downtown St. Catharines.[3][7]
On July 17 and 30, 1958, the Department of Highways assumed the West Side Road, constructed in the years prior by Welland County between Port Colborne and Welland.[8][9] The old highway was turned back to the WCA on June 26 and September 4 of that same year.[8] Highway 58 then entered Welland along what is now Prince Charles Drive, meeting and becoming concurrent with Highway 3A at Riverside Drive and then turning east along Main Street.[10] By 1960, the Welland Bypass was completed along the routing of the former Niagara, St. Catharines and Toronto Railway interurban line – the final operating interurban railway in Canada, which ceased operations on the line on March 28, 1959.[11] This rerouted the highway along what is now Prince Charles Drive northwest to Thorold Road, where it turned east to Niagara Street.[12]
North of Welland, Highway 58 initially travelled concurrent with Highway 3A along Niagara Street and the Merrittville Highway to Highway 20, where Highway 3A ended. Highway 58 turned east and travelled concurrent with Highway 20 across the Welland Canal at Allanburg, before turning north onto the current route. However, it continued north along Allanburg Road into Thorold, where it crossed the Welland Canal on a swing bridge and travelled north into St. Catharines along Ormond Street, Merritt Street and Hartzel Road (Niagara Regional Road 52) to Highway 8 (Queenston Street, now Niagara Regional Road 81).[13]
Major intersections
The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 58, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.[1] The entire route is located in the Regional Municipality of Niagara.[3]
| Location | km[1] | mi | Destinations | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Port Colborne | 0.0 | 0.0 |  Regional Road 3 – Fort Erie | Formerly Highway 3 | |
| Welland | 5.5 | 3.4 |  Regional Road 23 (Forks Road) – Dain City | ||
| 7.2 | 4.5 | Highway 58A east | Passes through Townline Tunnel en route to  Highway 140; end of southern section | ||
| Thorold | 25.3 | 15.7 | Highway 20 east – Niagara Falls Regional Road 82 (Allanport Road) | Beginning of northern section | |
| 28.6 | 17.8 |  Regional Road 53 (Beaverdams Road) | |||
| 29.6 | 18.4 |  Regional Road 57 east (Thorold Stone Road) – Niagara Falls | Unsigned designation Highway 7186 | ||
| 31.0 | 19.3 |  Regional Road 67 (Pine Street) | |||
| 32.1 | 19.9 |  Regional Road 56 (Collier Street) | |||
| 33.6 | 20.9 |  Regional Road 71 (St. Davids Road) Highway 406 – St. Catharines | No access from westbound St. Davids Road to southbound Highway 58 | ||
| 1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi | |||||
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2008). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Retrieved February 15, 2012.
- ↑
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Ontario Back Road Atlas (Map). Cartography by MapArt. Peter Heiler. 2010. p. 19. § R–S34, T–U33. ISBN 978-1-55198-226-7.
- ↑ Massasauga range in southern Ontario
- ↑ "Appendix 4 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1936. p. 49.
- ↑ "Appendix 3 - Schedule of Assumptions and Reversions". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1938. p. 81.
- ↑ "Map Showing Highway Numbers". Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1938. p. 12.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Annual Report (Report). Department of Highways. March 31, 1959. p. 239, 241.
- ↑ A.A.D.T. Traffic Volumes 1955–1969 And Traffic Collision Data 1967–1969. Ontario Department of Highways. 1970. pp. 88–89.
- ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by C.P. Robins. Ontario Department of Highways. 1959. Welland inset.
- ↑ Warwick, Peter D.A. "Niagara, St. Catharines & Toronto Railway 1930-1961". TrainWeb. Retrieved February 21, 2014.
- ↑ Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by C.P. Robins. Ontario Department of Highways. 1960. Welland inset.
- ↑ Google Earth historic imagery, dated 1934/35
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