The Conestoga Parkway is a freeway in Waterloo Region, Ontario, Canada. It runs northeast/southwest through the cities of Kitchener and Waterloo, linking the cities via Highway 8 freeway ("Freeport Diversion") to the main east/west route, Highway 401. It is numbered in three sections: the westernmost portion from Baden to the Highway 8 interchange is multiplexed as Highway 7/8; the central section from 8 to the Victoria Street exit is Highway 7; and the northeast portion, into Waterloo through to St. Jacobs is Highway 85 (which had formerly been known as Highway 86). A typical rural freeway (Interstate 5 in the Central Valley of California, USA). ... A map of Ontario with Waterloo Regional Municipality in red. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Loyal it began, loyal it remains) Other Canadian provinces and territories Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Lieutenant Governor James K. Bartleman Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Area 1,076,395 km² (4th)  - Land 917,741 km²  - Water 158,654 km² (14. ... Kitchener skyline Map of Kitchener The City of Kitchener, in southwestern Ontario, has a population of 190,399 (2001 census). ... Map of Waterloo Regional Municipality, Ontario with Waterloo in red. ... This article is about the Ontario 400-series highway. ... Baden is a community located N of New Hamburg, NW of Kitchener, W of Waterloo and SW of Elmira. ... Multiplex is either a word derived from multi- + plex (fold) or a synthetic portmanteau combining the words multiple and complex and can be another word for many or (literally) manifold. ... Ontario provincial highway 7 is one of the Kings Highways in the province of Ontario, Canada. ... St. ...

Note that the Parkway is merely the expressway portion of the various numbered highways, all of which continue for some distance as open-access highways beyond the expressway section. Thus, the Conestoga has the distinction of being one of the few Ontario-maintained freeways not numbered according to the 400-Series Highway network, even though it is busier and wider than many rural 400-series highways, because the freeway upgrade put together only parts of existing routes. The 400-series highways are/intended to be full freeways for their entire length. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with List of Ontario expressways. ...

An observation which may seem odd for those new to the highway is the stark difference in the congested, inefficient exit for Highway 7/Victoria Street, when compared with the high-capacity but underused Wellington Street exit just north of it. Both exits are served by a collector-express system. This is due to the 'foresight' that Highway 7 would be redirected as a controlled-access highway and attached to the current Wellington Street; these plans have languished for over 30 years and are still in the planning stages. Opposition has arisen due to the new alignment of Highway 7 passing through environmentally sensitive lands. The new Highway 7 freeway proposal linking up the Conestoga in Waterloo and the Hanlon Parkway in Guelph bypasses the existing Highway 7/Victoria Street. The plans also call for a complex 4-level interchange with the Conestoga Parkway and Wellington Street, a rarity outside of the Greater Toronto Area. Critics point out that its $25 million cost represents a quarter of the $100 million budget for the total project, with the high cost due to the difficulty in land acquisition to accomodate the junction. The Hanlon Parkway is a high-capacity at-grade suburban expressway in the city of Guelph, Ontario, Canada, which connects it with Highway 401. ... The Greater Toronto Area (called the GTA by local residents) is the largest metropolitan area in Canada and is centred around the fifth largest city in North America, Toronto, after Mexico City, New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago. ... The Canadian dollar, CAD or C$, is the unit of currency of Canada. ... The Canadian dollar, CAD or C$, is the unit of currency of Canada. ...

The Parkway is one of the busiest roads in the region. In 2004, extensive improvements were completed around the former obsolete and bottlenecked "half-cloverleaf" junction with the expressway section of Highway 8, that links it to the 401. This included a new flyover ramp from Conestoga westbound to Highway 8 eastbound. 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

While it is officially known as the Conestoga Parkway, it is often referred to by locals as the Conestoga Expressway or just The Expressway.

The speed limit on the Conestoga Parkway is 90 km/h (55 mph), this is unusual for a provincially-maintained freeway in Ontario, however some sections are below the standards of 400-Series Highways. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with List of Ontario expressways. ...

See also

• List of Ontario provincial highways
• List of Ontario expressways

This is a list of provincial highways in Ontario, Canada. ... The expressway network in Southern Ontario, including the 400-Series Highways (blue), Provincial expressways not part of the 400-Series system (orange), and Municipal expressways (purple) The majority of the expressways of Ontario are the 400-Series Highways; there are also some others which do not have that designation. ...

External links

• Highway 7 Images, including pictures of the Conestoga Parkway