Ontario Highway 144

Highway 144 is long, lying between its southern terminus at an interchange with Highway 17 west of Lively and its northern terminus at an intersection with Highway 101 west of downtown Timmins. At an isolated point north of Lively and south of Timmins, Highway 144 meets Highway 560 and the Sultan Industrial Road, which constitute the only major transportation route intersecting the highway outside the cities of Sudbury and Timmins; Just north of the Highway 560/Sultan Industrial Road intersection, the highway crosses the Laurentian Divide, the boundary between the Great Lakes and Arctic Ocean watersheds. North of this point, all streams and rivers flow north into Hudson Bay. A sign and a small picnic area mark the transition. The highway continues through isolated forests and curves east to meet Highway 661, a short spur serving the town of Gogama. The highway turns to the north and follows along the western side of Kenogamissi Lake for to its terminus at Highway 101, just west of the urban core of Timmins and some east of Foleyet. == History ==

Prior to 1964, Highway 144 was numbered as Highway 544 and extended from Sudbury to Cartier. Construction began in that year on a new route connecting Sudbury to Timmins, with work commencing at both ends as well as from Gogama. The highway number was changed in April 1965; the upgrade from secondary to primary highway reflected the proposed route's importance in linking two major urban centres. Despite this, the portion of the route of Highway 544 between Windy Lake and Cartier was bypassed by a new alignment; the old route is still known as Old Highway 544 or Old Cartier Road. Until some point between 1974 and 1977, Highway 144 passed through the INCO mine property north of Copper Cliff and entered Sudbury along Spruce Street and Regent Street. Realignments between Sudbury and Azilda resulted in a shorter routing that is today known as Sudbury Municipal Road 35. Despite this, planning was underway throughout the 1970s to construct several bypasses around Sudbury, including the Southwest Bypass of Highway 17, as well as the Northwest Bypass between it and Chelmsford. In early 1983, contracts were tendered for the grading of the northern section within what was then the town of Rayside-Balfour. The project was completed by the end of the year, after which a second contract was awarded to grade a further . The final grading contract, which included the interchange at Highway 17, was awarded in 1985 and completed in mid-1986. The entire bypass was paved shortly thereafter and opened in 1987. == Future ==

In recent years, heavy traffic has been reported along the route through Chelmsford and Dowling, with an average daily traffic volume of 19,200 vehicles in 2002. The Ministry of Transportation has announced a preliminary study into potential improvements to the route between Chelmsford and Dowling, which may include the possibility of a full bypass realignment. The City of Greater Sudbury had widened Municipal Road 35 between the eastern intersection of Municipal Road 21 (Notre Dame Street) in Azilda to Highway 144 in Chelmsford to four lanes. Construction began in the fall of 2018 with a culvert replacement contract. The completion of widening of Municipal Road 35 was expected to be completed in 2021 and was fully completed in 2022. == Major intersections ==