The East Metro Freeway was a proposed north-south expressway to begin at Highway 401 and Morningside Avenue and roughly follow the edge of the Rouge River valley to Highway 407 which itself was under planning at that time. In phase 2,beyond Highway 407, the proposed route was between the Ninth Line and the York-Durham Line in Markham, leading to Stouffville. It was a last priority for the province and construction was not planned to have begun until the Scarborough Expressway was completed. It was not an extension of the Scarborough Expressway as the Scarborough's northeastern terminus would have been 2 km south of East Metro's southern terminus.
After the cancellation of the Spadina Expressway, the Scarborough Expressway was put on hold and went into review. Toronto, Metro Toronto, and Ontario had 4 choices left. Choices 2,3, and 4 included the East Metro Freeway. Choice 2 was selected. This choice didn't have the Scarborough Expressway. With the Scarborough gone, the East Metro route was less necessary. It also encountered serious opposition from Rouge River naturalist groups. The proposal was officially dropped from planning documents on June 1, 1994.
Donald Cousens Parkway follows a route similar to the proposed East Metro Freeway, but lies entirely within Markham now.
Read more about this topic: Cancelled Expressways In Toronto
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