Highway 103 is an east-west highway in Nova Scotia that runs from Halifax to Yarmouth.
 Highway 103 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fishermen's Memorial Highway | ||||
 Highway 103 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by Nova Scotia Department of Public Works | ||||
| Length | 291.3 km[1] (181.0 mi) | |||
| Existed | 1963–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| East end |  Hwy 102 in Halifax | |||
| ||||
| West end | Hardscratch Road in Yarmouth | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | Canada | |||
| Province | Nova Scotia | |||
| Counties | Halifax Regional Municipality, Lunenburg, Queens, Shelburne, Yarmouth | |||
| Towns | Yarmouth, Shelburne, Bridgewater, Lunenburg, Mahone Bay | |||
| Highway system | ||||
| ||||
The highway follows a route of 291 kilometres (181 mi) along the province's South Shore region fronting the Atlantic coast. The route parallels its predecessor, local Trunk 3. The highway varies from 2-lane controlled access to 2-lane local secondary roads on the section between Yarmouth and Hebbville. East of Hebbville to Hubbards, the highway is 2-lane controlled access, with the exception of a 3 km (2 mi) 4-lane divided freeway near Chester. From just west of Hubbards (exit 6), to the interchange with Highway 102 (near Bayers Lake) in Halifax, the highway is 4-lane divided freeway. Same as Highway 101, kilometre markers increase running west-to-east, increasing from Yarmouth to Halifax; with exit numbers running east-to-west, increasing from Halifax to Yarmouth.
In 2013, Highway 103 was redesignated as the Fishermen's Memorial Highway.
History
editThe highway has developed sporadically since the 1970s, with the 2-lane controlled access portion to Bridgewater being largely responsible for the abandonment of CN Rail's South Shore line, the former Halifax and Southwestern Railway.[citation needed]
In November 1998, construction was completed that twinned a five kilometer section of highway between exit 2 and exit 3.[2] In November 2006, construction was completed that twinned 15 kilometres of highway between exit 3 and exit 5.[3] In December 2006, an 8.3 kilometre bypass around Barrington was completed.[4]
In late September 2015 a new section of highway was opened to bypass the Port Joli area.[5] In November 2016, a new section was completed which bypassed Port Mouton. Residents complained that the single exit east of the community had lengthened the trip for people heading west from Port Mouton.
The new interchange in Ingramport (exit 5A) opened in January 2017.
Work on twinning Highway 103 from exit 5 (Tantallon) to exit 5A (Ingramport) began in February, 2018 and was completed in December, 2020. Twinning from exit 5A (Ingramport) to exit 6 (Hubbards) started in 2020 and was completed in July of 2024. Construction on the twinning from exit 6 (Hubbards) to exit 7 (East River) is underway.
Names of Highway 103
edit- Fishermen's Memorial Highway - June 2013
- Barrington Bypass - Barrington to Oak Park, Shelburne County
- Nine Mile Road - Sable River to Jordan Falls, Shelburne County
Safety concerns
editBetween 2006 and 2009, there were 29 deaths on the highway.[6] In 2009, it was considered Nova Scotia's deadliest highway and was ranked the second most dangerous highway in Canada by the Canadian Automobile Association.[7][8] In 2009 alone, ten people died in automobile accidents on the highway, according to the Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal.[9] Between 2008 and 2012, there were 22 fatalities on the highway.[10]
In September 2018, local residents raised concern over the presence of a road sign on the highway, near the turnoff to Port Mouton, that had a very confusing appearance, looking like a patchwork of several other road signs. It was supposedly revealed when a hotel removed its billboard advertisement, revealing the sign below.[11]
Exit list
edit| County | Location | km[1] | mi | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Halifax | Halifax | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1B |   Hwy 102 to Hwy 101 – Halifax, Dartmouth, Windsor, Airport, Truro, Bedford | Hwy 103 eastern terminus. |
| 0.4 | 0.25 | 1D | Dunbrack Street | Eastbound exit only. | ||
| 1.2 | 0.75 | 2 |   Trunk 3 west (St. Margarets Bay Road) to Route 333 (Lighthouse Route) – Beechville, Lakeside, Peggys Cove | Westbound signed as exits 2A (west) and 2B (east) | ||
| Timberlea | 5.6 | 3.5 | 3 | To Trunk 3 / Timberlea Village Parkway | ||
| Hubley | 12.7 | 7.9 | 4 | Trunk 3 – Timberlea, Five Island Lake | ||
| Upper Tantallon | 19.6 | 12.2 | 5 |  Route 213 (Hammond's Plains Road) to Trunk 3 / Route 333 – Peggys Cove, Bedford | ||
| | 29.9 | 18.6 | 5A | To Trunk 3 – Ingramport, Black Point, Boutiliers Point | ||
| Lunenburg | Hubbards | 40.8 | 25.4 | 6 |  Trunk 3 / Route 329 – Queensland, Blandford | |
| East River | 50.0 | 31.1 | 7 | Trunk 3 / Route 329 – Chester, Blandford | ||
| Chester | 57.2 | 35.5 | 8 |  Trunk 14 – Chester, Windsor | ||
| Chester Basin | 61.3 | 38.1 | 9 |  Trunk 12 – Kentville, New Ross | ||
| Mahone Bay | 75.0 | 46.6 | 10 | Trunk 3 – Lunenburg, Martin's River | ||
| Blockhouse | 79.9 | 49.6 | 11 |   Route 324 (Cornwall Road) to Route 325 – Mahone Bay, Lunenburg | ||
| Bridgewater | 91.6 | 56.9 | 12 |    Trunk 10 to Route 331 / Route 332 – West LaHave, East LaHave, Riverport | ||
| 91.8 | 57.0 | Crosses the LaHave River | ||||
| 93.0 | 57.8 | 12A | Bridgewater Business Park | Interchange under construction (opening in Fall 2024) | ||
| 94.8 | 58.9 | 13 | Route 325 (Victoria Road) to Route 331 – Bakers Settlement, Wileville | |||
| Hebb's Cross | 101.4 | 63.0 | 14 | Trunk 3 east – Hebbville, Bridgewater | At-grade | |
| Italy Cross | 107.9 | 67.0 | 15 | Italy Cross Road − Crousetown, Petite Riviere, Broad Cove, Rissers Beach Provincial Park | At-grade | |
| Middlewood | 111.7 | 69.4 | 16 | Hirtle Road / Camperdown School Road − Vogler's Cove, Broad Cove, Camperdown | At-grade | |
| Queens | | 122.4 | 76.1 | 17 | Route 331 – East Port Medway, Voglers Cove, Charleston, Cherry Hill | At-grade |
| Crosses the Medway River | ||||||
| 124.2 | 77.2 | 17A | Port Medway Road − Mill Village, Port Medway, East/West Berlin, Charleston | At-grade | ||
| 130.5 | 81.1 | 18 | Trunk 3 west – Brooklyn, Liverpool | At-grade | ||
| Liverpool | 136.9 | 85.1 | 19 |  Trunk 8 to Trunk 3 – Milton, Brooklyn | ||
| 137.5 | 85.4 | Crosses the Mersey River | ||||
| | 140.3 | 87.2 | 20A | To Trunk 3 (Old Port Mouton Road) – White Point, Hunt's Point | At-grade | |
| 153.2 | 95.2 | 21 | To Trunk 3 – Summerville Centre, Hunt's Point, White Point | At-grade | ||
| Port Mouton | 155.9 | 96.9 | Trunk 3 east | Intersection closed, use exit 21[12] | ||
| | 160.7 | 99.9 | 22 | Trunk 3 west – Port Joli, East Side Port l'Hébert, Kejimkujik National Park (Seaside Adjunct) | At-grade; Trunk 3 is unsigned | |
| 163.3 | 101.5 | Trunk 3 east – Port Joli | Intersection closed, use exit 22[12] | |||
| Shelburne | Sable River | 176.6 | 109.7 | 23 | Trunk 3 west – Lockeport | At-grade |
| Jordan Falls | 190.3 | 118.2 | 24 | Trunk 3 east / Lake John Road – Lockeport | At-grade | |
| 190.8 | 118.6 | Jordan Branch Road − Jordan Branch, Jordan Ferry, Jordan Bay | At-grade | |||
| | 196.0 | 121.8 | 25 | Trunk 3 west – Shelburne | At-grade | |
| Shelburne | 200.0 | 124.3 | 26 |  Route 203 – Ohio, East Kemptville | At-grade | |
| Birchtown | 206.9 | 128.6 | 27 | Trunk 3 east – Gunning Cove, Ingomar | At-grade | |
| Clyde River | 220.3 | 136.9 | 28 |  Route 309 south (South Road) / Quinns Falls Road – Port Clyde, Eel Bay, Port La Tour | At-grade | |
| Barrington | 230.0 | 142.9 | 29 | Trunk 3 west to Route 309 – Port La Tour | At-grade | |
| Riverhead | 234.3 | 145.6 | 30 | To Trunk 3 – Barrington Passage, Lower Woods Harbour, Upper Woods Harbour | ||
| Yarmouth | Pubnico | 256.0 | 159.1 | 31 |  To Trunk 3 / Route 335 – Lower Argyle | At-grade |
| Argyle | 268.4 | 166.8 | 32 | Trunk 3 east – Central Argyle, Argyle Head | East end of Trunk 3 unsigned concurrency; at-grade, proposed interchange | |
| 269.0 | 167.1 | Crosses the Argyle River | ||||
| 269.4 | 167.4 | 32A | Trunk 3 west – Glenwood | West end of Trunk 3 unsigned concurrency; at-grade, proposed intersection closure | ||
| | 276.2 | 171.6 | Eel Lake Road / Belleville Road | At-grade | ||
| 276.8– 277.4 | 172.0– 172.4 | Crosses Eel Lake | ||||
| Tusket | 281.2 | 174.7 | 33 |  Route 308 to Trunk 3 – Quinan | ||
| 282.4 | 175.5 | Crosses the Tusket River | ||||
| Yarmouth | 291.3 | 181.0 | Hardscratch Road − Brooklyn | Hwy 103 western terminus | ||
| 292.1 | 181.5 |   Trunk 3 (Starrs Road) to Hwy 101 / Trunk 1 – Ferry | ||||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
| ||||||
Communities
edit- Halifax
- Beechville
- Lakeside
- Timberlea
- Hubley
- Lewis Lake
- Upper Tantallon
- Head of St. Margarets Bay
- Ingramport
- Black Point
- Queensland
- Hubbards
- Simms Settlement
- East River
- East Chester
- Windsor Road
- Chester Basin
- Beech Hill
- Gold River
- Western Shore
- Martins Point
- Martins River
- Oakland
- Clearland
- Blockhouse
- Maitland
- Pine Grove
- Oakhill
- Bridgewater
- Cookville
- Bridgewater
- Wileville
- Hebbville
- Hebbs Cross
- Italy Cross
- Middlewood
- Danesville
- Mill Village
- Brooklyn
- Milton
References
edit- ^ a b "Highway 103 in Nova Scotia" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved August 20, 2019.
- ^ Four Lanes Open on Highway 103 Government of Nova Scotia
- ^ Highway 103 Greatly Improved Government of Nova Scotia
- ^ Barrington Bypass Completed Government of Nova Scotia
- ^ Verge, Brittany W. (October 14, 2015). "Smoothing out Highway 103: Port Joli bypass opens to traffic". Queens County Advance. Transcontinental Media. Retrieved 30 May 2017.
- ^ Canada's most notorious highways CBC.ca
- ^ "Nova Scotia's Highway 101 to be widened". CBC News. March 6, 2009. Retrieved 2017-06-26.
- ^ "CAA NEO Blog". Archived from the original on 2012-04-28. Retrieved 2010-01-16. "The Top 12 Most Dangerous Highways in Canada"
- ^ 10 most dangerous roads in Canada Archived 2010-10-21 at the Wayback Machine MSN.ca
- ^ Highway 103 safety review launched in Nova Scotia CBC.ca
- ^ "Is this road sign in Canada the world's most confusing?". BBC. 11 September 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2018.
- ^ a b "Highway 103: Broad River to Port Joli Phase 1" (PDF). Nova Scotia Transportation & Infrastructure Renewal. Government of Nova Scotia. January 2014. Retrieved August 20, 2019.