Ontario Highway 405

King's Highway 405, also known as Highway 405 and the General Brock Parkway, is a 400-Series Highway in the Canadian province of Ontario connecting the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) near St. Catharines with the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge in the village of Queenston. It then crosses the Niagara River, where it encounters the international border with the United States and continues into New York as Interstate 190 (I-190).

Highway 405
General Brock Parkway
Highway 405 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Ministry of Transportation of Ontario
Length8.7 km[1] (5.4 mi)
ExistedSeptember 11, 1963[2]–present
Major junctions
West end Queen Elizabeth Way – St. Catharines
East end I-190 / New York Thruway near Lewiston, NY
Location
CountryCanada
ProvinceOntario
Highway system
  • Ontario provincial highways
← Highway 404→ Highway 406

Designated and under construction by 1960, the short freeway was opened to traffic on September 11, 1963. On August 13, 2006, Highway 405 was dedicated the General Brock Parkway. The entire length of Highway 405 is patrolled by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP).

Route description

Highway 405 serves to connect the northern end of I-190 in New York at the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge with the QEW, and therefore it follows a somewhat direct path between the two.[3][4] Throughout its length, the highway gently climbs the Niagara Escarpment, reaching the top east of Stanley Avenue before crossing the Niagara Gorge. The highway is surrounded by forest to either side for most of its length, and the only settlement near it is the village of Queenston.[5] As Highway 405 entirely lies within the Province of Ontario and is not subject to federal administration, its entire length is patrolled by the OPP.[6]

Highway 405 begins by diverging from the QEW at St. Catharines. It continues north-east for 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi), then gently curves south-easterly. The opposing lanes, initially separated by a wide gap, converge towards each other to form a 15-metre (49 ft) grass median.[5][7] The highway dips into a shallow gully, widens to five lanes (three eastbound, two westbound), and then curves northeast to pass north of a hydroelectric reservoir for the Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Generating Stations.[5] The opposing lanes converge, with an Ontario Tall Wall separating them, and pass beneath Niagara Regional Road 102 (Stanley Avenue). The freeway's lone interchange is with Stanley Avenue, and traffic continuing east must cross the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge into the United States. The additional eastbound lane provided along this section is for the queueing of trucks.[8] After passing the reservoir, the highway reaches the Canada Border Services plaza. It then passes over the Niagara Parkway and heads onto the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge over the Niagara River.[5] The Highway 405 designation ends at the border with the United States, where it continues as I-190 towards Buffalo, New York.[4][8]

History
Highway 405 crosses the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge into New York.

Highway 405 was part of a network of divided highways envisioned by Thomas McQuesten in the mid-1930s to connect New York with Ontario.[3] Though the Queen Elizabeth Way would cross the Niagara River by 1942 in Niagara Falls, Highway 405 and the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge would form the first direct freeway link between the neighbouring countries. Planning for both was underway by 1958, and construction began in 1960.[9][10] The bridge was built at the same time as the freeway, though it opened several months earlier on November 1, 1962.[11] Highway 405 was completed in August 1963[12] and officially opened to the public on September 11, 1963.[2] In 1969, an interchange with Stanley Avenue was built and opened to traffic.[13]

In 2004, the eastern end of the freeway was modified to permit the queueing of trucks at the border, with the addition of one lane to the eastbound carriageway beginning at Stanley Avenue. The reconstruction of the toll plaza resulted in the gradual removal of the interchange with the Niagara Parkway, with the westbound off-ramp to the Parkway remaining open to traffic until December 4, 2006, thereafter westbound motorists have to head west to the Stanley Avenue exit and take Portage Road in order to reach the Parkway.[14][15]

The highway was named the General Brock Parkway on October 13, 2006 in honour of the War of 1812 hero, Major General Sir Isaac Brock, who died at the Battle of Queenston Heights.[16][17]

Exit list

The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 405, as noted by the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario.[1] The entire route is located in the Regional Municipality of Niagara. All exits are unnumbered.

Locationkm[1]miDestinationsNotes
Niagara-on-the-Lake0.00.0 Queen Elizabeth Way – St. Catharines, TorontoWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
Niagara Falls5.53.4 Regional Road 61 (Townline Road)
 Regional Road 102 (Stanley Avenue) – Niagara-on-the-Lake		Last exit in Ontario; on/off ramps at Niagara Parkway are now closed off to regular traffic. Speed limit reduced from 100 km/h to 60 km/h approaching end of highway.
Niagara-on-the-LakeNiagara ParkwayRamps closed December 4, 2006[15]
8.75.4Canada–United States borderTolled crossing[18]
Lewiston–Queenston Bridge over the Niagara River
I-190 continues toward Buffalo, New York
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
  •       Closed/former

See also
  •  Roads portal
  •  Ontario portal

References
  1. Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2010). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". Government of Ontario. Archived from the original on July 6, 2011. Retrieved February 10, 2014.
  2. A.A.D.T. Traffic Volumes 1955–1969 And Traffic Collision Data 1967–1969. Ontario Department of Highways. 1970. p. 11.
  3. Stamp, Robert M. (1987). The Queen Elizabeth Way, Canada's First Superhighway. Boston Mills Press. ISBN 0-919783-84-8.
  4. Ontario Back Road Atlas (Map). Cartography by MapArt. Peter Heiler. 2010. p. 19. § R34–35. ISBN 978-1-55198-226-7.
  5. Toporama. Canadian Topographic Atlas - Highway 405 (Map). Ministry of Natural Resources Canada. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  6. Griffith, Cary J. (2006). Lost in the Wild: Danger and Survival in the North Woods. Minnesota Historical Society Press. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-87351-589-4. Retrieved January 7, 2014. Like a state patrol in the U.S., the OPP is responsible for patrolling provincial highways.
  7. Google (June 10, 2010). "Route of Highway 405" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved June 10, 2010.
  8. "Queenston–Lewiston Bridge 5th Lane". Canadian Consulting Engineer. Business Information Group. October 2006. Retrieved June 28, 2010.
  9. "Above the Regular Budget". The Ottawa Citizen. Vol. 116, no. 29. July 31, 1958. p. 7. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
  10. 1960 Annual Report (Report). Ontario Department of Highways. March 31, 1961. pp. 11, 175. Retrieved June 24, 2010.
  11. Berketa, Rick. "Bridges Over Niagara Falls". Niagara Falls Thunder Alley. Retrieved June 26, 2010.
  12. Spieler, Cliff (June 9, 1963). "A New View Is In Store For Niagara Visitors". Resorts and Travel. New York Times. p. 445. Retrieved June 25, 2010.
  13. Annual Report (Report). Ontario Department of Highways. March 31, 1970. p. 22.
  14. D. Hackston; R. Taylor; P. Skorochod; G.W. English; P. Heimrath; J. MacDonald (March 2007). Eastern Ontario Transportation Logistics Study (PDF) (Report). Northumberland County. pp. 20–21. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 2, 2012. Retrieved June 28, 2010.
  15. Michelmore, Bill (November 14, 2006). "Queenston bridge project to close ramp ; Reconstruction of toll plaza means an end to quick westbound access to parkway". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on April 10, 2016. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  16. 38:2 Bill 66, General Brock Parkway Act (Report). Ontario Legislative Assembly. 2006. Archived from the original on June 10, 2011. Retrieved June 25, 2010.
  17. Forsyth, Paul (June 28, 2006). "Monument, University Named for 1812 War Hero Sir Isaac Brock, and Now, Highway". Niagara This Week. Metroland Media Group. Retrieved June 20, 2014.
  18. "Toll Cost & Vehicle Definitions". Niagara Falls Bridge Commission. Retrieved June 8, 2014.

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