Ontario Highway 531

Highway 531
Route information
Length:	13.5 km[2] (8.4 mi)
Existed:	1956[1] – present
Major junctions
South end:	Maple Road in Bonfield
North end:	Highway 17 – Ottawa
Location
Divisions:	Nipissing District
Villages:	Bonfield
Highway system
Ontario provincial highways 400-series • Former ← Hwy 529A Hwy 532 →

Secondary Highway 531, commonly referred to as Highway 531, is a provincially maintained secondary highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. It connects Highway 17 east of North Bay with the community of Bonfield. The 3.5-kilometre (2.2 mi) route was established in 1956, and has remained the same since then. It passes through a forested area and has several private residences located along its length. Aside from Maple Road, its southern terminus, and Highway 17, its northern terminus, Highway 531 encounters no roads along its length.

Route description

Highway 531 is a short highway east of North Bay which serves to connect the community of Bonfield with Highway 17, the Trans-Canada Highway. There are no other roads encountered along its length, aside from the termini.^[3] On an average day, 1300 vehicles travel the route, which is 3.5 kilometres (2.2 mi) long.^[2]

The highway begins at Maple Road north of the community of Bonfield, travelling north alongside a Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) track, curving northeast with a vista of a large swamp on the Kaibuskong River. It follows parallel to the river for its entire length, but is not within sight of it aside from here. The highway enters a forest and diverges from the railway, curving north. From here to its northern terminus, residences dot both sides of the highway, with coniferious forests between them. The route curves back to the northeast and travels straight for 2 kilometres (1.2 mi), ending at Highway 17 next to a restaurant and motel.^[3]

History

Highway 531 was first assumed by the Department of Highways in early 1956, along with several dozen other secondary highways, but was likely maintained as a development road prior to that.^[1][4] The route has not changed since that time.^[3]

Major intersections

The following table lists the major junctions along Highway 531. The entirety of the route is located within Nipissing District.^[3]

Location	km[2]	Destinations	Notes
Bonfield	0.0	Maple Road
	3.5	Highway 17 – Ottawa
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Ontario Department of Highways (1956). Ontario Road Map (Map). Cartography by C.P. Robins. Section N34. 
2. ^ ^{a b c} Ministry of Transportation of Ontario (2007). "Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) counts". http://www.raqsb.mto.gov.on.ca/techpubs/TrafficVolumes.nsf/tvweb?OpenForm&Seq=5. Retrieved April 27, 2011. 
3. ^ ^{a b c d} Peter Heiler (2010). Ontario Back Road Atlas (Map). Cartography by MapArt. p. 95, section E–F34. ISBN 978-1-55198-226-7. 
4. ^ "Ontario Secondary Roads Now Designated 500, 600". 112. The Globe and Mail. February 4, 1956. p. 4. "Two new Ontario road numbers appear on the province's 1956 official road map which will be ready for distribution next week. The new numbers are the 500 and 600 series and designate hundreds of miles of secondary roads which are wholly maintained by the Highways Department. More than 100 secondary roads will have their own numbers and signs this year. All of these secondary roads were taken into the province's main highways system because they form important connecting links with the King's Highways"