Walker Road
Encyclopedia
Walker Road was one of the busiest roads in Windsor, Ontario
before the road closure. It has an average annual daily traffic (AADT) level of 32,000 cars per day at the CP Rail crossing.
, distillery baron
. The CP Rail crossing where Walker Road meets Grand Marais Road and the Chrysler Canada
Windsor plant is the location where the Tornado of 1946
dick through and reached its peak intensity (an F4
in strength).
Today, the road is very busy, servicing mainly industries and businesses along the road, with an interchange
with E.C. Row Expressway. It begins at the Hiram Walker distillery and continues southerly past the Chrysler Canada
minivan
plant and the Windsor Airport
.
Outside the City of Windsor, Walker Road was designated as a "Windsor Suburban Road", with its shield remaining the same, but with Windsor Suburban replacing "Essex County". In 1998, the Windsor Suburban Roads Commission was disbanded and the road reverted back to Essex County.
overpass
(which is the city limits for Windsor), the road gains the designation of Essex County Road 11. It does not have direct access to Highway 401. However, it does intersect with Provincial Road (County Road 46) which has an interchange with Highway 401 approximately 500 metres southeast of Walker Road.
The road is dead straight for 17 km, before swinging southeast (concurrent with County Road 18) towards Harrow, Ontario
, its final terminus.
) at the CP Rail tracks and Grand Marais Road East was opened.
Previously, Walker Road crossed the rail tracks at grade. Approximately seven trains would cross at Walker road, halting traffic for up to 20 minutes. This would cause long traffic jams and increase traffic on nearby north-south arteries.
The project began on August 7, 2007 and was slated to cost about $50 million dollars
with construction to last 16-18 months. The project involved lowering Walker Road below the rail tracks. The intersection of Walker and Grand Marais was also lowered and improved with additional turning lanes.
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...
before the road closure. It has an average annual daily traffic (AADT) level of 32,000 cars per day at the CP Rail crossing.
History
The road is named after Hiram WalkerHiram Walker
Hiram Walker was an American grocer and distiller, and the eponym of the famous distillery in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Walker was born in East Douglas, Massachusetts, and moved to Detroit in the mid-1830s...
, distillery baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
. The CP Rail crossing where Walker Road meets Grand Marais Road and the Chrysler Canada
Chrysler Canada
Chrysler Canada Incorporated is Chrysler's Canadian subsidiary. Incorporated in 1925, the Chrysler Corporation of Canada gained complete control of a Maxwell-Chalmers plant in Windsor Ontario that had been used to manufacture some Chrysler models in the previous year...
Windsor plant is the location where the Tornado of 1946
Windsor - Tecumseh, Ontario Tornado of 1946
The Windsor–Tecumseh Tornado of 1946 was the most powerful tornado to hit Windsor, Ontario, being an F4 in strength, touching down on June 17 of that year...
dick through and reached its peak intensity (an F4
Fujita scale
The Fujita scale , or Fujita-Pearson scale, is a scale for rating tornado intensity, based primarily on the damage tornadoes inflict on human-built structures and vegetation...
in strength).
Today, the road is very busy, servicing mainly industries and businesses along the road, with an interchange
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
with E.C. Row Expressway. It begins at the Hiram Walker distillery and continues southerly past the Chrysler Canada
Chrysler Canada
Chrysler Canada Incorporated is Chrysler's Canadian subsidiary. Incorporated in 1925, the Chrysler Corporation of Canada gained complete control of a Maxwell-Chalmers plant in Windsor Ontario that had been used to manufacture some Chrysler models in the previous year...
minivan
Minivan
Minivan is a type of van designed for personal use. Minivans are typically either two-box or one box designs for maximum interior volume – and are taller than a sedan, hatchback, or a station wagon....
plant and the Windsor Airport
Windsor Airport
Windsor Airport, , is located in the southeast portion of the city of Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The airport serves a mixture of scheduled airline flights and general aviation, and is a popular point of entry into Canada for private and business aircraft...
.
Outside the City of Windsor, Walker Road was designated as a "Windsor Suburban Road", with its shield remaining the same, but with Windsor Suburban replacing "Essex County". In 1998, the Windsor Suburban Roads Commission was disbanded and the road reverted back to Essex County.
In The Field
At the Highway 401Highway 401 (Ontario)
King's Highway 401, also known by its official name as the Macdonald–Cartier Freeway and colloquially as the four-oh-one, is a 400-Series Highway in the Canadian province of Ontario stretching from Windsor to the Quebec border...
overpass
Overpass
An overpass is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway...
(which is the city limits for Windsor), the road gains the designation of Essex County Road 11. It does not have direct access to Highway 401. However, it does intersect with Provincial Road (County Road 46) which has an interchange with Highway 401 approximately 500 metres southeast of Walker Road.
The road is dead straight for 17 km, before swinging southeast (concurrent with County Road 18) towards Harrow, Ontario
Harrow, Ontario
Harrow is a community located in the town of Essex, Essex County, Ontario, Canada.Hiram Walker, of Canadian Club Whisky fame is credited with putting Harrow on the map. Walker built the railroad, which then brought grain from the South end of the County into the city for use in his distillery...
, its final terminus.
Upgrades
At 8 PM on October 31, 2008, the long-awaited underpass (grade separationGrade separation
Grade separation is the method of aligning a junction of two or more transport axes at different heights so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other transit routes when they cross each other. The composition of such transport axes does not have to be uniform; it can consist of a...
) at the CP Rail tracks and Grand Marais Road East was opened.
Previously, Walker Road crossed the rail tracks at grade. Approximately seven trains would cross at Walker road, halting traffic for up to 20 minutes. This would cause long traffic jams and increase traffic on nearby north-south arteries.
The project began on August 7, 2007 and was slated to cost about $50 million dollars
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
with construction to last 16-18 months. The project involved lowering Walker Road below the rail tracks. The intersection of Walker and Grand Marais was also lowered and improved with additional turning lanes.
See also
- List of Essex County Roads
- County Road 20
Former Provincial Highways
- Highway 2Highway 2 (Ontario)King's Highway 2, usually referred to simply as Highway 2 is a provincially maintained highway in Ontario. Once the primary east–west route across the southern end of the province, Highway 2 became mostly redundant in the 1960s following the completion of Highway 401, which more or less...
- Highway 18Highway 18 (Ontario)King's Highway 18, commonly referred to as Highway 18 was the longest highway in Essex County, Ontario, and travelled through the most communities. Today, it is known as County Road 20...
- Highway 18AHighway 18A (Ontario)King's Highway 18A, commonly referred to as Highway 18A, was a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario which was the southernmost provincial highway to ever exist in Canada. Since 1979, the entire route has been known as Essex County Road 50...
- Highway 98Highway 98 (Ontario)Highway 98 was a provincial highway in the Canadian province of Ontario, designated as part of the provincial highway system from 1938 to 1970. The route travelled through the northern part of Essex County and through south-central Chatham-Kent, extending from Windsor to Blenheim.The route's...
- Highway 107Highway 107 (Ontario)King's Highway 107 was one of Ontario's shortest provincially maintained highways, at just in length. The highway has been through several re-numberings throughout its history.- History :...
- Highway 114Highway 114 (Ontario)King's Highway 114, commonly referred to as Highway 114, was a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. It was one of the shortest highways ever assigned in the province, at just in length...