Highway 2A is the designation of six alternate routes off Highway 2 in Alberta, Canada. In general, these are original sections of Highway 2, such as the southern portion of Macleod Trail in Calgary. They passed through communities before limited-access freeways were built to shorten driving distance, accommodate heavier volumes and to bypass city traffic. Portions of the alignment of Highway 2A follow the route of the former Calgary and Edmonton Trail, a historic overland route that predates the province of Alberta itself.
The six segments of Highway 2A span three broad regions of the province. The southernmost runs from High River north to Calgary as Macleod Trail. The Central Alberta segment, the longest at , runs in two sub-sections from near Crossfield to Leduc, passing through Red Deer and several smaller communities along the way. The three northern segments—at Smith, near High Prairie, and at Grimshaw—together cover in the Peace River Country and Lesser Slave Lake region.
History The Central Alberta segment of Highway 2A was, until the early 1960s, the primary route between Calgary and Edmonton. Much of that alignment in turn follows the older Calgary and Edmonton Trail, a trade route in use by Indigenous peoples long before European settlement and traveled by explorer David Thompson in 1800. The more developed overland trail was blazed by John McDougall in 1873 and extended to Calgary by 1875; mail service between Calgary and Edmonton began operating over the route in July 1883.
By the late 1950s, the two-lane highway through communities such as Carstairs, Olds, the centre of Red Deer, Blackfalds, Ponoka, and Wetaskiwin was inadequate for growing traffic. Plans for a new four-lane divided highway bypassing most of those communities were developed and the bypass of Red Deer and Lacombe was announced by minister Gordon Taylor on September 15, 1960, at a meeting in Red Deer. The new route veered west of the existing road to cross the Red Deer and Blindman Rivers before rejoining it north of Lacombe; the routing surprised local residents, who had expected the bypass to pass east of the city. The former two-lane route had been carrying 5,000 vehicles per day. The bypass opened on November 21, 1962, and the former route through Red Deer was redesignated as Highway 2A.
In Calgary, Highway 2A was established along Barlow Trail in 1971 when Highway 2 was realigned onto the newly constructed Blackfoot Trail freeway (later renamed Deerfoot Trail). The Barlow Trail designation of Highway 2A was phased out in the mid-1980s, after a portion of the road was closed to allow for runway expansion at Calgary International Airport.
In northern Alberta, the segment near High Prairie was previously signed as part of Highway 2 and was renumbered as Highway 2A in 1990 at the same time that Highway 34 was renumbered to Highway 43 north of Valleyview.
High River – Calgary
Highway 2A currently begins in the Town of High River and follows 12 Avenue SE and Centre Street before passing by Aldersyde and intersecting Highway 7. The highway then travels westward to the Town of Okotoks, where it branches north and follows Southridge Drive and Northridge Drive through Okotoks before rejoining Highway 2 near De Winton. In 2003, it was extended north by sharing a common alignment with Highway 2 for until it splits to Deerfoot Trail (Highway 2) and Macleod Trail (Highway 2A), ending in the City of Calgary at Stoney Trail (Highway 201). Macleod Trail continues north into downtown Calgary but does not carry a highway designation.
Macleod Trail takes its name from its destination to the south, Fort Macleod, a town named for James Macleod of the North-West Mounted Police. The road's origins as a trail connecting Calgary to Fort Macleod long predate the highway designation. South of Calgary, Highway 2A follows what was the old two-lane Highway 2 alignment through the communities of the Foothills County before the divided expressway was constructed to the east. The portion between De Winton and Stoney Trail in Calgary follows Macleod Trail through suburban south Calgary and carries substantial local traffic.
Major intersections
Central Alberta
In its central Alberta segment, Highway 2A runs adjacent to the Queen Elizabeth II Highway without entering Calgary or Edmonton. Highway 2A generally runs parallel to the Canadian Pacific Railway Calgary–Edmonton line, which runs to the west of Highway 2 between Crossfield and Red Deer, and to the east of Highway 2 between Red Deer and Leduc. Highway 2A is divided into two subsections with a gap between Bowden and Innisfail.
The first subsection of Highway 2A starts at the Highway 2 / Highway 72 interchange (Exit 295) and passes through the town of Crossfield, town of Carstairs, and by the town of Didsbury before entering the town of Olds along 46 Avenue and intersecting Highway 27 (46 Street). The highway continues north to the town of Bowden before terminating at Highway 587, just west of Highway 2 (Exit 357).
The second subsection begins in the town of Innisfail at Highway 590 (50 Street), just west of Highway 2 (Exit 368), along 42 Avenue. The highway continues north and passes through the town of Penhold before entering the city of Red Deer along Taylor Drive. The highway turns east along 19 Street and then north along Gaetz Avenue. Highway 2A splits into one-way couplets through downtown Red Deer, with northbound traffic following 49 Avenue and southbound traffic following portions of Gaetz Avenue and 51 Avenue. After crossing the Red Deer River, the one-way streets rejoin and intersect Highway 11 (67 Street) and Highway 11A, which forms Red Deer's northern city limit. The highway continues north through the town of Blackfalds and city of Lacombe. North of Lacombe, the highway rejoins Highway 2 and shares the same alignment for before the highway branches northeast and passes through hamlet of Morningside, town of Ponoka, and hamlet of Maskwacis. The highway enters the city of Wetaskiwin along 56 Street and continues north through the town of Millet, by the hamlet of Kavanagh, before it rejoins Highway 2 (Exit 516) in the city of Leduc.
Major intersections
Smith
Highway 2A, known as Highway 2A:44 by Alberta Transportation, begins at Highway 2 near the hamlet of Hondo and connects with the hamlet of Smith. The segment provides access to communities in the Municipal District of Lesser Slave River No. 124 that are not directly served by Highway 2.
Major intersections The entire route is in M.D. of Lesser Slave River No. 124.
High Prairie
Highway 2A, known as Highway 2A:54 by Alberta Transportation, begins at Highway 2 at the locality of Triangle, west of the Town of High Prairie, and connects with Highway 49 near the hamlet of Guy. Prior to 1990, this section was signed as Highway 2 but was renumbered at the same time that Highway 34 was renumbered to Highway 43 (present day Highway 49) north of the Town of Valleyview.
This segment of Highway 2A is considered an alternate route of the Northern Woods and Water Route.
Major intersections
Grimshaw
Highway 2A, known as Highway 2A:36 by Alberta Transportation, begins at Highway 2 at the locality of Roma Junction, west of the Peace River Airport and west of the town of Peace River, and terminates in the town of Grimshaw, where it passes the Mile Zero monument of the Mackenzie Highway.
The segment of Highway 2A through Grimshaw passes the starting point of Highway 35, the Mackenzie Highway, which runs north through the Peace River Country to the Northwest Territories. The town is the site of the Historic Mile 0 Mackenzie Park, which marks the southern terminus of that route.
Major intersections The entire route is in M.D. of Peace No. 135.
Former alignments Barlow Trail
In the 1960s, Highway 2 entered north Calgary along Barlow Trail; however in 1971 Highway 2 was realigned to the newly constructed Blackfoot Trail freeway (later renamed Deerfoot Trail). Highway 2A was established along most of the original alignment, starting at 16 Avenue NE (Trans-Canada Highway, Highway 1) in the south and continuing north along Barlow Trail for , past the Calgary International Airport, to 112 Avenue NE (later renamed Country Hills Boulevard), where it travelled west for to its interchange with Deerfoot Trail. Direct access from Barlow Trail to Blackfoot Trail was closed to make room for the 17 Avenue SE / Blackfoot Trail / Deerfoot Trail interchange.
The Highway 2A designation was phased out in the mid-1980s and the Barlow Trail between 48 Avenue NE (just north of McKnight Boulevard) and the main terminal access was closed to allow for additional runway construction.
High River – Cayley
The existing section of Highway 2A used to extend from High River along 10 Street SE, through the hamlet of Cayley, and intersect Highway 2 at the locality of Connemara, located north of the town of Nanton along the Foothills County / Willow Creek M.D. boundary. The segment was located only west of Highway 2 and was dropped by the province in 1997.
See also
Transportation in Calgary
References