Weston Roadis both a contour street and a north–south street in westernTorontoand westernYork RegioninOntario,Canada. The road is named for the former Village ofWeston,which was located near Weston Road andLawrence Avenue West,in the present-day neighbourhood of Weston.
 
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|---|---|
| York Regional Road 56 | |
 Weston Rd. within Toronto | |
| Maintained by | City of Toronto Region of York |
| South end | St. Clair Avenue(Continues asKeele Street) |
| Major junctions | Black Creek Drive Eglinton Avenue Jane Street Lawrence Avenue  Highway 401Albion Road/ Walsh Avenue Sheppard Avenue Finch Avenue Steeles Avenue  Highway 407 Highway 7 Langstaff Road Rutherford Road Major Mackenzie Drive Teston Road King-Vaughan Road King Road Lloydtown-Aurora Road |
| North end |  Highway 9 |
Route description
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In the south, Weston Road begins atSt. Clair Avenueopposite the north end of the southern leg ofKeele Street.The southernmost 55 metres of the street north of St. Clair, where the roadway diverted to the west off its straight baseline, was formerly a part of Keele, which officially breaks here and is cut off from its short mid-section. Weston Road formerly began at the diversion, but this stretch of Keele St was redesignated as part of Weston Road in 2006.[1] Weston Road then travels diagonally across thegeneral arterial road gridin a northwesterly direction as a contour road to St. Phillips Road, passing throughMount DennisatEglinton Avenue,andWestonat Lawrence Avenue. North of St. Phillips, it becomes a north-south artery but does not align to the grid proper until south ofSheppard Avenue.It runs parallel toHighway 400from north ofHighway 401toSteeles Avenueand intoVaughanin York Region.[citation needed]
Most of Weston Road is a four-lane principal arterial road through residential areas, except for the northern section which is mostly industrial. The speed limit south ofFinch Avenueis 50 km/h (30 mph), which increases to 60 km/h (35 mph) between Finch and Steeles.[citation needed]
North of the Toronto city limits at Steeles Avenue, Weston Road enters York Region, where it is designated asYork Regional Road 56.It passes through the two western municipalities of York Region, Vaughan in the south andKingin the north. The speed limit through the urbanized parts of Vaughan is 60 km/h (35 mph), while the limit is 80 km/h (50 mph) in rural Vaughan and King Township. The northern terminus of the road is atHighway 9in theHolland Marsh.In Toronto, the speed limit is 50 due to the unposted speed limit.[2]
History
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Weston Road was first laid out in the first decade of the 1800s to connect Dundas Street to the village of Weston. This followed the route of what is today Old Weston and (west of Watts Avenue)Rogers Roads,then the route of the current Weston Road north to Weston. The old routing was renamed in 1948. Between 1810 and 1820, it was extended north to Vaughan Township by following SixthLineWest. In 1841, the route was bought by private interests and it became the "Weston Plank Road", a toll road of planks. The Weston Plank Road extended from Dundas Street north to Musson's Bridge over the Humber, whereAlbion Roadbegan. The company built its headquarters at St. Phillips Road and Weston Road. The building exists today at 2371 Weston Road. In 1846, the Weston Plank Road Company built Albion Plank Road from Musson's bridge northwest toClairvillewhere one could continue north toBoltonviaIndian Line.In the 1850s, the roads were assumed by the township and its municipalities.[3]
Old Weston Road(s)
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Additionally, there are two bypassed "Old Weston Roads"; the first being located in the environs of the southern terminus. It begins as a minor stub running north from intersection ofDundas,Dupontand Annette Streets, and breaks at theCanadian Pacifictracks, which were bridged until the 1970s. It resumes just south of the western terminus ofDavenport Road,widens to four lanes, passes through the neighbourhood of Silverthorne, and ends at Rogers Road, the westernmost section of which also formed part of the original Weston Road, before the construction of the new Weston Road course south of Rogers Road's present terminus.[citation needed]
The second is located in Vaughan, just north of Steeles Avenue, and was created when a jog was eliminated in the 1990s. It lies just east of the linking segment where it continues south as Signet Drive (built as a southerly extension of the offset York Region section), and ends at a T-intersection with Weston Road two blocks north of Steeles.[citation needed]
Public transit
editThirteenbus routesserve Weston Road: 36F Finch West, 41 Keele, 59 Maple Leaf, 71 Runnymede, 73CD Royal York, 84A Sheppard West, 89 Weston, 161 Rogers Rd, 165 Weston Rd North, 171 Mount Dennis, 341 Keele Blue Night, 941 Keele Express and 989 Weston Express. The 89 Weston serves Weston Road fromAlbion RoadandWalsh AvenuetoSt. Clair Avenue West,then viaKeele StreettoKeele subway station.The 165 Weston Road North serves Weston Road fromSteeles Avenue Westto Albion Road and Walsh Avenue, then via east onWalsh and Wilson AvenuestoWilson station,then east toYork Mills station.The 41 Keele, 341 Keele Blue Night and 941 Keele Express only serve Weston Road travelling southbound, serving Old Weston Road and Rogers Road travelling northbound. Unlike the aforementioned 89 Weston and 165 Weston Rd North, the 989 Weston Express serves all of Weston Road in Toronto, from Keele station to Steeles Avenue.
York Region Transitroute 165 Weston serves Weston Road north of Steeles Avenue, running fromPioneer Village stationto theMajor Mackenzie West Terminal,which is located to the north ofCanada's Wonderland.
In popular culture
editThe road is mentioned in Toronto nativeDrake's 2016 song "Weston Road Flows", his 2015 song "You & The Six", and his 2018 song "God's Plan".[4]
See also
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References
edit- ^"Bylaw 434-2006"(PDF).City of Toronto.RetrievedDecember 1,2010.
- ^"Driving along | Safe and Responsible Driving | ontario.ca".ontario.ca.Retrieved2023-03-21.
- ^"Appendix A-1: Cultural Landscape and Built Heritage – Existing Conditions: Review"(PDF)(pdf). City of Toronto.RetrievedJuly 19,2016.
- ^"Drake – God's Plan (Lyrics Review and Song Meaning)".justrandomthings.