Ontario Highway 10 - History

History

Historically, Highway 10 follows a 19th-century stage coach route known as the Toronto–Sydenham Road that ran north from Highway 5 in Cooksville through Brampton, Orangeville and Shelburne to Owen Sound. It was first designated as a provincial highway on February 26, 1920 when the newly formed Department of Highways assumed the road. It was later extended when the provincial government assumed the road running south to Highway 2 in Port Credit on the north shore of Lake Ontario. At that point, the total length of the highway was 166 km.

In 1968, a by-pass around Orangeville was completed.

In 1998, the Mike Harris government, seeking to balance the provincial budget, off-loaded responsibility for the southernmost 31 km running through Brampton and Mississauga onto their respective municipal governments. This segment became known as Hurontario Street.

In 2009, Highway 410 was connected to Highway 10 about 500 metres north of Highway 10's southernmost terminus at the border of Brampton. The 500-metre "orphaned" segment is now discontinuous, and while still technically part of the highway, is only linked to the rest of the highway via a suburban road, and is signed "Hurontario Street" rather than "Highway 10".

Also in 2009, a major project to widen single-lane sections of the southern portions of the highway was completed, and the highway is now four lanes wide from Highway 410 north to Camilla. From Shelburne north to Owen Sound, it remains two-lane highway with several "passing lanes" in hillier regions.

During winter, the northern stretches of the highway that pass through the snowbelt region of Grey County are subject to poor visibility and road closings during windy conditions or winter storms.