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Highways in Canada's provinces and territories

Numbered highways in Canada are split by province, and a majority are maintained by their province or territory transportation department. With few exceptions, all highways in Canada are numbered. Nonetheless, every province has a number of highways that are better known locally by their name rather than their number. Some highways have additional letters added to their number: A is typically an alternate route, B is typically a business route, and other letters are used for bypass (truck) routes, connector routes, scenic routes, and spur routes. The territory of Nunavut has no highways.

Classifications

This is a breakdown of the classifications of highways in each province, and an example shield of each classification where available.

Trans-Canada

Alberta

British Columbia

Manitoba

New Brunswick

Newfoundland and Labrador

Nova Scotia

Ontario

Provincial highways (the King's Highway) in Ontario are divided into four classes:

  • Hwy 2-148, 400-427, QEW — primary highways
    •  Hwy 2-148 — intercity (ex: Highway 11) usually with at-grade intersections
    •  400-427 — 400-series freeways and limited-access highways
    • The Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW) is a de facto part of the 400-series, and is given a numerical designation of 451 in some documents, although this number is not posted on the road itself
  •  Hwy 500-699 — secondary highways (ex: Highway 502)
  •  Hwy 800-813 — tertiary highways (ex: Highway 808)
  • 7000-series — resource & industrial roads (unmarked) or short stubs connecting numbered highways

Prince Edward Island

Quebec

Saskatchewan

Northwest Territories


There are currently ten territorial highways in the Northwest Territories. All are named and numbered 1-10. There was also the now-closed Tuktoyaktuk Winter Road, replaced by the Inuvik–Tuktoyaktuk Highway, which extended the Dempster Highway (Highway 8). The former Tlicho winter road system, replaced by the Tłı̨chǫ All-Season Road, extending from the Yellowknife Highway. Other roads include the Mackenzie Valley winter road system that extends Northwest Territories Highway 1, the Tibbitt to Contwoyto Winter Road, and the Dettah Ice Road extending from Yellowknife to the community of Dettah.

Nunavut

There are a number of roads and highways in Nunavut; none are yet numbered.

Yukon

There are currently fourteen territorial highways in Yukon. All fourteen are named and numbered 1-11, 14-15, & 37.

See also