History
The history of Highway 140 begins in May 1966, when the St. Lawrence Seaway Authority received Federal approval for the Welland Bypass, a 13.4-kilometre (8.3 mi) channel that would serve to bypass the canal through downtown Welland, where several crossings proved to be a hazard for shipping traffic and the shipping traffic an impediment to pedestrian and vehicular traffic. The new channel would be dug out and flooded, providing the opportunity for the construction of cheap cut and cover tunnels beneath the channel. By 1968, construction was underway on a tunnel at East Main Street and at the Port Colborne – Welland townline.
Due to the numerous road disconnections that would take place as a result of the Welland Bypass, a new highway was proposed to link Welland with Port Colborne. One of the severed highways was Highway 58, which then followed Canal Bank Street south from Welland. In late 1970, the Department of Highways tendered contracts for the construction of the new highway on the east side of the bypass. Construction began from the north, reaching as far south as Ramey Road.
The section north of Townline Road was completed within a year. Around the same time, the third and final contract was tendered for the section north of Highway 3. On May 20, 1972, the Main Street Tunnel was opened to traffic at a morning ceremony featuring local officials and the Welland Police Association Pipe Band. Highway 140 was opened several months later, without ceremony, on October 5. It has remained unchanged since then, and was not affected by the provincial highway transfers in 1997 and 1998.
The various municipalities serviced by Highway 140, as well as Niagara Region, have called for four-laning the route and redesignating it as Highway 406. However, the MTO is committed to extending Highway 406 to Highway 58 southwest of Welland. On April 4, 2006, the MPP for Erie—Lincoln, Tim Hudak, introduced a Private Member's Bill. The Highway 406 to Port Colborne Act passed first reading, but was not brought up for a second reading.
Read more about this topic: Ontario Highway 140
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