List of numbered roads in Essex County

In Essex County, Ontario, odd-numbered county roads are north–south, the numbers increasing from west to east. Even-numbered roads are generally east–west roads, the numbers increasing from north to south, but there are exceptions to the rules. County roads are also no longer signed within the city limits of Windsor. There are several roads named "Malden Road", which are not related or connected directly to each other.

The Essex By-Pass (current Highway 3) was built in stages, from 1977 to 1981. The first stage was to just south of Essex, where it was routed along Malden Road to its former alignment (now CR 34). It was extended to Ruthven in 1981, and then routed around Leamington in 1997.

In 2002, the City of Windsor and the Town of Tecumseh swapped land with each other. Windsor gained land west of Banwell, which contained the Windsor International Airport and ironically the Tecumseh Mall. While Tecumseh received in exchange land directly south centred around the community of Oldcastle. Portions of several county roads within the land given to Windsor lost their status as county roads and only exist in name. None of these roads have been renamed as of 2016.

Current County Roads

Shield	Number	Names	Western/Southern Terminus	Eastern/Northern Terminus	Major Communities	Comments
	1	Wheatley Road, Queen Street, Baptiste Road	Dead end at a factory plant parking lot just south of Wheatley, Ontario	CR 2	Wheatley, Tilbury	Dual designation of Essex County Road 1, and Chatham-Kent Road 1.
	2	Tecumseh Road, Notre Dame Street, 2nd Concession Road	Brighton Road (CR 21)	Essex-Kent County border (with CR 1)	Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Puce, Ontario, Emeryville, Ontario, Belle River, Ontario, Deerbrook, Ontario, Pointe-Aux-Roches, Ontario (All now a part of Lakeshore, Ontario).	Is split in two parts: From CR 21 to County Road 22 in Puce, Ontario, and then from County Road 22 in Belle River to Essex-Kent County border (with CR 1). Formerly Highway 39 until 1961, when the Pike Creek Bypass/E.C. Row Expressway bypass of Pike Creek, Ontario was finished, from Banwell Road to CR 2/22 Intersection. Former bridge approach is now used as a driveway/boat launch for the bordering house, next to the current roadway. Continues as Chatham-Kent Road 36.
50px	3	Malden Road	River Canard, Ontario at CR 20 (15 km/9 mi)	Windsor City limit	Lasalle, Ontario, Windsor, Ontario	A north-south semi-rural road in Essex County, Ontario. It travels from Highway 3 (Huron Church Road) in Windsor to its terminus with Essex County Road 20 in River Canard, Ontario. Like several other nearby county roads, Malden Road was listed as a Windsor Suburban Road until 1998. There are other Malden Roads in Essex County. County Road 12 between County Road 11 (Walker Road) and County Road 34 (Talbot Road North) is named Malden Road. The road next north is named North Malden Road, while the road next south is named South Malden Road. Another Malden Road exists northwest in Maidstone between County Road 8 and Manning Road. An Old Malden Road exists between 14th Concession and 12th Concession/Walker Sideroad.
	5	Thomas Road, Meloche Road	CR 18	CR 10	Amherstburg, Ontario	Is currently discontinuous due to expansion of the Amherstburg quarry.
	6	Todd Lane	CR 3	Highway 3	Lasalle, Ontario	Can be thought of as a continuation of County Road 40 and County Road 42
	7	Huron Church Line	Highway 3	CR 9 (Howard Avenue)	Lasalle, Ontario
	8	Townline Road	CR 3 in River Canard	CR 1	Lasalle, Ontario, Amherstburg, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario, Essex, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Kingsville, Ontario, Leamington, Ontario	Cuts across the mid-line of Essex County, almost directly half-way. Road heads due-east from River Canard in the west, straight towards Essex, and continuing all the way to the County boundary with Chatham-Kent, Ontario. The road is appropriately named "Townline Road", as it acts as the boundary line with all of the current municipalities of Essex County. It also cuts Essex County nearly in half, as it is situated halfway between Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie.
	9	Howard Avenue (7th Concession Road)	Windsor City limits/Highway 3	CR 20	Lasalle, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario	acts as a townline between Lasalle and Tecumseh, Ontario.
50px	10	Middle Side Road	CR 20 (Front Road)	CR 11 (Walker Road) / Essex, Ontario town limit	Amherstburg, Ontario, McGregor, Ontario.
	11	Walker Road	Windsor City limit	CR 20	Tecumseh, Ontario, Essex, Ontario, Amherstburg, Ontario, McGregor, Ontario, Harrow, Ontario	Close to the Chrysler Canada Greenway, acts as a townline between Amherstburg and Essex. Has a brief concurrency with CR 18.
	12	Malden Road (unrelated to CR 3)	CR 11 (Walker Road)	CR 23 (Arner Townline)	Gesto, Ontario, Essex, Ontario
50px	13	Erie Street	CR 20 in Harrow	CR 50 in Colchester, Ontario	Harrow, Colchester, Essex	Can be thought of as an extension of CR 11
	14	Mersea Road	CR 27, just north of Cottam, Ontario	CR 1	Kingsville, Ontario, Cottam, Ontario, Albuna, Ontario, Leamington, Ontario
	15	Edgars Sideroad, Campbell Sideroad, South Malden Road, Marsh Road	CR 8	CR 11, just north of Harrow	Essex, Ontario, Harrow, Ontario, Gesto, Ontario
	16	Alma Street	CR 20	CR 5	Amherstburg, Ontario	One of Essex County's shortest county roads
	17	10th Concession	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario	Windsor city limit at Highway 401	CR 46	Used to continue to CR 42, however, annexation by the City of Windsor, moved the terminus south to the new Windsor city limit on the north side of Highway 401.
	18	Pike Road, 7th Concession Road, Road 4, Mersea Road 4	20	Highway 77	Amherstburg, Ontario, Essex, Ontario, Kingsville, Ontario, Leamington, Ontario
	19	Manning Road	Riverside Drive	CR 8	Tecumseh, Ontario, St. Clair Beach, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Maidstone, Ontario, Essex, Ontario	One of the busiest roads in any category in Essex County.
	20	Front Road, Highway 18, Main Street, Seacliff Drive	Morton Drive / Windsor city limit	CR 33	Windsor, Ontario, Lasalle, Ontario, River Canard, Ontario, Amherstburg, Ontario, Essex, Ontario, Harrow, Ontario, Kingsville, Ontario, Ruthven, Ontario, Leamington, Ontario	Formerly Highway 18, continues as Ojibway Parkway in Windsor. It is also the Detroit River Heritage Parkway from intersection with E.C. Row Expressway to just south of Amherstburg. Former alignment for the River Canard bridge is now known as Sari Lane.
	21	Brighton Road	CR 2	CR 42	St. Clair Beach, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario
	22	E.C. Row Expressway, Highway 2, County Road 22, Tecumseh Road, Notre Dame Street	Windsor city limit (just east of CR 43 (Banwell Road))	CR 42 (just south of Belle River, Ontario)	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario, St. Clair Beach, Ontario, Puce, Ontario, Emeryville, Ontario, Belle River, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario	Formerly Highway 39 from July 11, 1934, until 1970, when Highway 2 absorbed it entirely. Was re-routed along the Pike Creek Bypass portion of E.C. Row Expressway (section from Manning Road to CR 2/22 intersection) in 1961. One of the busiest roads in any category in Essex County. Was Highway 2 from 1970 until turned back in 1998.
	23	Arner Townline, Gosfield Townline, Fairview Avenue, Naylor Sideroad	CR 50	CR 46	Arner, Ontario, Essex, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario	Acts as a townline between Essex, Ontario and Kingsville, Ontario
	25	Puce Road, 12-13 Sideroad	CR 22	CR 46	Puce, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario
	27	Belle River Road, Cottam Sideroad	CR 2 (Belle River)	CR 23	Belle River, Ontario, Woodslee, Ontario, Cottam, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Kingsville, Ontario, Essex, Ontario.
	29	Division Road, South Talbot Road	CR 34, south of Cottam	CR 20	Kingsville, Ontario, Cottam, Ontario	Main road leading from Highway 3 into downtown Kingsville.
	31	Albuna Townline, French Line Road, St. Joachim Road, West Ruscom River Road	CR 2 in Deerbrook	CR 20 in Ruthven	Kingsville, Ontario, Leamington, Ontario, Ruthven, Ontario, St. Joachim, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Deerbrook, Ontario	The only county road to touch both lakes (Lake Erie and Lake St. Clair) under a single designation.
	33	Leamington By-Pass, Bevel Line, Point Pelee Road	Intersection with Highways 3 and 77 in Leamington	Point Pelee National Park entrance	Leamington, Ontario, Point Pelee	currently in two parts, from Highway 3/77 intersection, to CR 34, and again from CR 20 to Point Pelee Nat. Park. Leamington intends to connect the two via an "East End Arterial Road" to alleviate growth on the east side of town.
	34	Talbot Road, Highway 3, County Road 34	Highway 3, Maidstone, Ontario	CR 1, in Wheatley, Ontario	Tecumseh, Ontario, Maidstone, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Essex, Ontario, Kingsville, Ontario, Cottam, Ontario, Ruthven, Ontario, Leamington, Ontario, Wheatley, Ontario.	Former alignment of Highway 3, until the Essex By-Pass (current Highway 3) was completed, in 1981. The Leamington By-Pass was completed in 1997, and Highway 3 was routed along that road, being truncated at Highway 77.
	35	Comber Sideroad	Highway 77-Highway 401 interchange, just north of Comber, Ontario	CR 2	Pointe-Aux-Roches, Ontario/Stoney Point, Ontario, Comber, Ontario
	37	Gracie Sideroad, Simpson Sideroad, Manery Road	CR 20	CR 2	No towns of major significance
	39	Lighthouse Sideroad, 1st Concession, Tisdelle Drive	CR 2	Lighthouse Cove, Ontario	Lighthouse Cove, Ontario
50px	40	Sprucewood Avenue	Windsor city limit	CR 3	Windsor, Ontario, Lasalle, Ontario	Can be thought of as a continuation of CR 6 and CR 42
50px	41	Meadows Road	CR 20	CR 50	Amherstburg, Ontario, Essex, Ontario	Can be thought of as a continuation of CR 9 (Howard Avenue)
	42	Division Road, County Road 42, Old Highway 2	Windsor city limit	Tilbury, Ontario	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Belle River, Ontario, St. Joachim, Ontario, Tilbury, Ontario	Formerly Highway 18 from June 11, 1930, until re-numbered Highway 2 on December 16, 1931, when it gained its current routing. CR 42 became Highway 2, until 1970 before being re-routed via CR 22 in Belle River. Fully turned back in 1998. Continues as Chatham-Kent Road 2.
	43	Banwell Road, 11th Concession Road	E.C. Row Expressway	CR 46	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario	Acts as the border between Windsor and Tecumseh
	45	Union Avenue	CR 20	CR 34	Kingsville, Ontario, Ruthven, Ontario, Union, Ontario	Formerly Highway 18B (1937–1953), then Highway 107 from 1953 onward, before being turned back in 1970. Temporarily re-transferred to provincial control as Highway 18 for a few months during a re-routing to bring people towards the newly opened Leamington By-Pass (Highway 3), before being turned back in its entirety in 1998, being reverted to CR 45.
	46	Provincial Road, Middle Road, County Road 46	Windsor city limit	CR 1	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario, Maidstone, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario, Woodslee, Ontario, Ruscom Station, Ontario, Comber, Ontario	Formerly Highway 2A (1929–1938), then Highway 98 until 1970. It was the longest provincial highway lost to downloading until 1997.
	48	Oak Street	Intersection with CR 34 and Fraser Road	Erie Street (Formerly part of Highway 77)	Leamington, Ontario	Somewhat busy, travels through downtown Leamington, by the Heinz Canada Ketchup Factory. Has a 5-way traffic signal at its western terminus.
50px	50	Heritage Road	CR 20	CR 20	Amherstburg, Ontario, Colchester, Ontario, Kingsville, Ontario	Formerly Highway 18A from April 13, 1938, until being turned back in 1979, southernmost highway in Canada. Acts as a loop to CR 20, former Highway 18. Hwy 18A was turned back in 1983. Was fully paved by 1952. One Rand McNally map lists CR 50 as continuing north past CR 20 and CR 18, ending at Alma Street.
	Former Highway 114	Old Hwy 114, Malden Road, Malden Sideroad	CR 34	CR 46	Maidstone, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario, Lakeshore, Ontario	Originally Highway 3B from 1931 to 1938. Became Highway 98A in 1938, and then finally, Highway 114 in 1954. Turned back in 1970. Still signed as "Old HWY 114" and "Malden Road"

Former County Roads

Shield	Number	Names	Western/Southern Terminus	Eastern/Northern Terminus	Major Communities	Comments
	43 (Original)	Jefferson Road	E.C. Row Expressway	Division Road (CR 42)	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario	In the early 1970s, Windsor Airport was expanded, and Pilette Road and Jefferson Road were both closed off to traffic, permanently. Jefferson is used as an auxiliary parking lot for Chrysler Canada's excesse production at times, though.
	117	Lauzon Parkway	Windsor city limit	CR 42-17 Intersection	Windsor, Ontario, Tecumseh, Ontario	Originally was a spur of CR 17 (Lauzon Road), now a separate county road in its own right.

Windsor Suburban Roads

Windsor Suburban Roads were a special designation given to certain county roads in Essex County that were close to the City of Windsor. The following roads had part or all of their routes listed as "Windsor Suburban Roads":

• County Road 2
• County Road 3
• County Road 6
• County Road 7
• County Road 8
• County Road 9
• County Road 11
• County Road 17
• County Road 19
• County Road 21
• County Road 25
• County Road 34
• County Road 40
• County Road 42
• County Road 46
• County Road 117

The roads were managed by the "Windsor Suburban Roads Commission" until 1998, when Windsor became a separated municipality. The Suburban Roads reverted to Essex County.

The only difference between these roads and standard county roads were the signs, which replaced "Essex County" with "Windsor Suburban".

County Road 2

Main article: Tecumseh Road

Essex County Road 2
Location:	Windsor, Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Puce, Emeryville, Belle River, Deerbrook, Stoney Point
Length:	35 km (22 mi)
Existed:	1998–present

County Road 2 is the designation given to Tecumseh Road outside of Windsor, Ontario. It skirts along the shore of Lake St. Clair in the northern edge of Essex County, Ontario, from Tecumseh, Ontario to its terminus near Lighthouse Cove and Tilbury. Though Tecumseh Road shares roughly 9/10s of this road's path, the two are not exactly synonymous, as County Roads are no longer signed in Windsor, and Tecumseh Road diverts from the county road in Belle River, Ontario.

Part of the route was the original alignment of Highway 39, until it was absorbed by Highway 2 in 1970.

County Road 3

Essex County Road 3
Location:	Windsor, LaSalle, River Canard, Amherstburg
Length:	15 km (9 mi)

County Road 3, also named Malden Road, is a long north–south semi-rural road in Essex County, Ontario. It travels from Highway 3 (Huron Church Road) in Windsor to its terminus with Essex County Road 20 in River Canard, Ontario.

There are other Malden Roads in Essex County. County Road 12 between County Road 11 (Walker Road) and County Road 34 (Talbot Road North) is named Malden Road. The road next north is named North Malden Road, while the road next south is named South Malden Road.

Another Malden Road exists northwest in Maidstone between County Road 8 and Manning Road. An Old Malden Road exists between 14th Concession and 12th Concession/Walker Sideroad.

County Road 8

Essex County Road 8
Location:	LaSalle, Tecumseh, Amherstburg, Essex, Kingsville, Lakeshore, Leamington, Ontario
Length:	38 km (24 mi)
Existed:	1953–present

County Road 8 is one of the County roads in Essex County, Ontario, travelling from River Canard in the east, straight towards Essex, and continuing all the way to the County boundary with Chatham-Kent, Ontario. The road is appropriately named "Townline Road", as it acts as the boundary line with all of the current municipalities of Essex County. It also cuts Essex County nearly in half, as it is situated halfway between Lake St. Clair and lake Erie.

History

Part of the road was re-designated as Highway 77 in 1963, and has been dually-designated ever since. The stretch of road from County Road 3 to County Road 25 east of Essex was once a Windsor Suburban Road.

Today

The road is lightly travelled, but has busy sections, particularly in Essex, Ontario, River Canard, Ontario, and along its concurrency with Highway 77.

County Road 19

Essex County Road 19
Location:	Windsor, Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Puce, Belle River, Ontario
Length:	12 km (7 mi)
Existed:	1934 (as part of Highway 39–1961 (As part of Highway 39)

County Road 19 (also known as Manning Road) is among the busiest roads in Essex County, Ontario, as it provides a direct route from Highway 401 into Tecumseh, Ontario and St. Clair Beach, Ontario, as well as a very direct route to Windsor, Ontario via E.C. Row Expressway.

The road starts at its intersection with Riverside Drive, and continues southbound to Townline Road (County Road 8), just east of Essex, Ontario.

The part of the road between Division Road/CR 42 road was designated as part of Highway 39 from 1934 to 1961, when the Pike Creek Bypass opened.

For much of its length, the road is only 2 lanes wide and in average to above average condition, though the Town of Tecumseh has widened the road from north of Tecumseh Road (County Road 2), south towards its intersection with E.C. Row Expressway (County Road 22), with assistance from the Provincial and Federal governments. A road resurfacing project is set to take place in 2020 between the 401 and County Road 46. This is the last remaining stretch between County Road 22 and County Road 34 to be resurfaced.

Controversy

A large public feud between the Windsor City Council and the towns of Tecumseh and Lakeshore, Ontario over Tecumseh's and Lakeshore's desires to widen Manning to a four-lane arterial road to handle the increase in traffic. City council feared this was the first step towards upgrading Manning Road into a freeway (as it has very few houses along it for its entire length and has enough room to be upgraded and widened) to connect to a widened E.C. Row Expressway (County Road 22) for cross-border truck traffic. The towns of Tecumseh and Lakeshore however, felt they had a legal right to widen the road (Manning Road acts as the townline and border between the two), since traffic levels had grown as more people commuted towards Essex and Maidstone.

County Road 22

See also: Ontario Highway 18 and Ontario Highway 39

Essex County Road 22
Location:	Windsor, Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Puce, Belle River, Ontario
Length:	21 km (13 mi)
Existed:	1934 (as part of Highway 39–1961 (as part of Highway 39)

Essex County Road 22 is a county road in Essex County, Ontario, linking the city of Windsor with Tecumseh and Lakeshore, terminating in Belle River.

History

County Road 22 began its life in 1961 as the Pike Creek Bypass of Highway 39, when Highway 39 was re-aligned from what is now Tecumseh Road (County Road 2). Highway 2 was re-aligned and absorbed Highway 39's final routing in 1970, and was itself turned back in 1998, being re-numbered as Essex County Road 22.

The road is extremely busy due to a housing boom in western Lakeshore, Ontario, and is the main direct arterial road leading into Windsor via E.C. Row Expressway.

For much of its length, the road is 4 lanes wide and is a divided highway from Banwell Road (CR 43) to Lesperance Road, and a super-4 from Lesperance Road to a roundabout at Old Tecumseh Road (CR 2) near Belle River. After the roundabout CR 22 it continues as a 4 lane road until I.C.Roy Drive where it narrows down to two lanes (one per direction) into Belle River.

In Belle River, the road is designated as a Connecting Link, as it is a former alignment of Highway 2.

County Road 34

Essex County Road 34
Location:	Windsor, Tecumseh, Oldcastle, Maidstone, Essex, North Ridge, Cottam, Ruthven, Ontario, Kingsville, Leamington, Ontario, Wheatley, Ontario
Length:	44 km (27 mi)
Existed:	1809, 1818 (to Essex), finished 1823–present

County Road 34 is the original alignment of Highway 3 in Essex County, Ontario.

The road branches from the original Highway 3 alignment in Maidstone, Ontario (just north of Essex, Ontario, and continues east, paralleling the current Highway 3 (and South Talbot Road) 1 km to the north, and 1 km south of North Talbot Road, for most of the way to Ruthven, Ontario.

The stretch of road from Windsor, Ontario to Manning Road was built with enough right of way to be twinned into a dual carriageway in the 1930s, but this has not happened, yet.

History

Highway 3 originally travelled down CR 34's path all the way through Essex, Cottam, Ruthven, and Leamington until 1971, when the MTO decided to build a bypass around the town of Essex. This Essex By-Pass was built and opened in 1977, and was temporarily re-routed along Malden Road (Formerly an extension of CR 12, not to be confused with Highway 114 OR Essex County Road 3) to CR 34 in North Ridge while it was being extended to Ruthven. This section opened in 1982.

By 1996, the town of Leamington and Township of Gosfield South were proposing a bypass around Leamington to alleviate the traffic in the town. After a debate on where the road should go ("Think Twice, Road Built Once", as the Windsor Star reported on this), the road was built by the MTO from the current terminus of CR 34 to Highway 3 on the east side of Leamington.

Though Highway 3 east of Highway 77 was downloaded to the county as CR 34, the Leamington Bypass was built by the MTO, and the part of the bypass east of Highway 77 was numbered as CR 33 (as the town of Leamington is proposing an "East Side Arterial Road" to link up with the other CR 33).

Today

Today, County Road 34 is a quiet county road, with only a few busy spots (Essex, Ruthven, Leamington). For the most part, traffic is fairly light. It has the Talbot Trail designation from its intersection with Highway 3 in Leamington to the Essex/Chatham-Kent boundary, and it is a part of the Heritage Highway for its entire length. A couple re-alignmened curves can be seen roughly 5 km south of Cottam, as well as a former alignment "Service Road" that serves a farm residence. Its main attraction is the roadside restaurant The Dairy Freeze.

County Road 42

Essex County Road 42
Location:	Windsor, Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Puce, Belle River, Ontario, St. Joachim, Tilbury
Length:	42 km (26 mi)
Existed:	1930 (as part of Highway 18)–1970 (as part of Highway 39)

County Road 42 has quite the colourful history, both as a Provincial highway, and as a county road. It is also one of the longest and busiest of the east–west arterial roads in Essex County, Ontario

History

The road was a part of Highway 18 from it was first uploaded as a provincial highway on June 11, 1930, designated as Base Line Road. However, since the road was intended to be an "alternate route" to Highway 2, but was much more direct, and quicker, it was re-numbered as Highway 2 on December 16, 1931. The former alignment along Provincial Road/County Road 46 was redesignated as Highway 2A.

The road was re-designated as Highway 2 on June 11, 1930, and remained so until 1970, when Highway 2 was re-routed along Highway 39/County Road 22's path west of Belle River.

The bi-directional on/off ramp leading along Division Road just north of the Provincial Road/Cabana Road intersection was gradually changed from a two-lane (one per direction) bi-directional ramp into a one-way one-lane west-to-northbound ramp in 1970, when Highway 2 absorbed nearby Highway 39, and traffic levels decreased.

Until 1998, County Road 42 was designated as a "Windsor Suburban Road" (west of its junction with Highway 2/County Road 22), with its shield remaining the same, but with Windsor Suburban replacing "Essex County". This is no longer the case, and all county roads in Essex County have the county's name on their shields.

In Windsor, the road continues as County Road 42 in the annexed Sandwich South area, Division Road and Cabana Road.

Widening Project

County Road 42 is set to be widened to 4 lanes from Banwell Road/County Road 43 all the way to Puce Road (County Road 25). Essex County Council approved land expropriation for the project in November 2019. The project also includes the realignment of County Road 43/11th Concession with Banwell Road as neither meet directly. The first phase of the project, to take place in 2020-2021 will be the construction of a multi-lane roundabout at the CR19 (Manning Rd)/CR42 intersection. Phase 2 & 3 are prep work to accommodate the widening between Manning Road and the newly realigned County Road 43, the most populated stretch of the road. Phase 4 will be the construction of a roundabout at County Road 43. The final phase (Phase 5) will be the widening of the road to 4 lanes which is planned for 2025.[1]

County Road 46

Essex County Road 46
Location:	Windsor, Maidstone, Woodslee, Comber, Tilbury, Merlin, Blenheim
Length:	96.2 km (59.8 mi)
Existed:	1823 (as Middle Road), 1929 (as Highway 2A), 1938 (as Highway 98), 1970 as County Road 46–1970

County Road 46 is a primary artery in northern Essex County, Ontario, linking Windsor, Ontario with Tilbury, Ontario, serving as a viable alternative to County Roads 42, 8, and Highway 401. In Windsor, the road is named "Provincial Road", and travels as a two-lane road for its entire length from its split with "Division Road".

The road is a typical county road today, having low traffic volumes outside of Windsor, but at one time, it was a vital provincial highway.

History

The road first began as the historic "Middle Road", which led from London and Toronto to Windsor, to allow colonists to enter the area and turn Essex County from untamed forest into farmland.

In the 1920s, the Province of Ontario's Department of Public Highways of Ontario (DPHO, the predecessor of today's Ministry of Transportation) decided to start numbering its roads. This road would gain the designation of Highway 18. in 1929, when the Ambassador Bridge opened, this road was renamed Highway 2A, and was intended to bring travellers into downtown Windsor (and eventually to the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel), while Highway 2 (which had absorbed the original routing of Highway 18 along modern day County Road 42), would lead people into downtown Windsor. Highway 3 would travel down the newly built alignment leading to the bridge. This road was renamed Highway 98 in 1938.

Before 1929, Highway 18 connected Windsor to Tilbury along today's County Road 42/Division Road, while Highways 2 and 3 were concurrent along Howard Avenue from the Ferry Docks (located between Howard Avenue and Ouellette Avenue) to Talbot Road. They split company at Maidstone (today's junction of County Road 34 and Former Highway 114). Highway 3 would continue through Essex, Ontario to Leamington and points east, while Highway 2 followed Malden Road (Former Highway 114) to Middle Road (What would become Highway 2A, then Highway 98, ultimately today's County Road 46).

1929: The Great Renumbering

In 1929, the Ambassador Bridge opened, offering the first direct and permanent link to Detroit. This caused a cascade of route re-numberings in the Windsor and Maidstone areas.

Highway 2 was rerouted along North Talbot Road, and diverted onto the newly built Provincial Road, leading northwest to Howard Avenue. At Howard, the road turned west along Tecumseh Road to Ouellette Avenue, turning north and terminating at the ferry docks.

Highway 3 would be routed along the newly built Huron Church Road to the Ambassador Bridge.

Since Base Line Road (Today's County Road 42/Division Road) was much quicker than Highway 2's former alignment along Middle Road, the province decided to extend Highway 18 from Tilbury to Leamington, and to have Highway 2 absorb its Windsor-Tilbury segment. The former routing of Highway 2 (along Middle Road) became Highway 2A (then Highway 98, and today's CR 46).

In 1931, Highway 2 was re-routed along County Road 42's current path, and the precursor to Highway 98 was re-designated as Highway 2A, and this lasted until 1938, when it was re-designated as Highway 98.

Reverting to County Control

When Highway 401 was built in the 1950s, traffic dropped, as drivers preferred the faster and more direct freeway, and this only increased when Highway 401 was twinned from a Super two to a four-lane divided freeway in 1965. By 1970, Highway 98 had been decommissioned as a provincial highway, and was turned over to Essex County's control.

Until 1998, County Road 46 was designated as a "Windsor Suburban Road" (west of its junction with Walker Road, with its shield remaining the same, but with Windsor Suburban replacing "Essex County". This is no longer the case, and all county roads in Essex County have the county's name on their shields.

In Windsor, the road continues as Division Road and Provincial Road.

Pike Creek Bypass

Main article: Pike Creek Bypass

Essex County Road 22
Location:	Windsor, Tecumseh, St. Clair Beach, Puce, Belle River, Ontario
Length:	7.4 km (4.6 mi)
Existed:	1934–1970 (re-numbered as Highway 2)

The Pike Creek Bypass is the part of Essex County Road 22 that stretches from Manning Road (County Road 19) east to its terminus in Puce, Ontario with Tecumseh Road (County Road 2). The road continues west past Manning Road as an extension of E.C. Row Expressway, eventually becoming that road.

History

The Bypass was constructed in 1961 to alleviate traffic along the former Highway 39 alignment (now Tecumseh Road/County Road 2). It was opened to traffic, and bypassed the town of St. Clair Beach, Ontario.

In 1970, Highway 2 was re-aligned along its path, eliminating Highway 39 from the system. Highway 2 would be decommissioned in 1998, however, and redesignated as Essex County Road 22.

Aside from a brief segment east from Manning Road for about 1 km, the road is entirely 2-lanes and without store and house accesses (it was built as a two-lane expressway, and only has access at intersections, with no adjacent properties or driveways.

Due to a housing boom in western Lakeshore, the road has become extremely congested, and many people have desired the road be widened to four lanes, or even a divided highway or freeway, but due to the narrow right of way, the road is being widened to four lanes as a new Super-Arterial road or even a Super 4, with the possibility of an interchange at Manning Road.

See also

• Pike Creek Bypass
• Highway 2
• Highway 18
• Highway 98
• Highway 107
• Highway 114
• List of roads in Windsor, Ontario
• List of roads in Chatham-Kent, Ontario
• List of roads in Lambton County, Ontario
• List of roads in Middlesex County, Ontario
• List of roads in Elgin County, Ontario

External links

• Official road maps of Essex County.
• TheKingsHighway.ca
• OntHighways.com