The road begins in the east end of St. John's, where Kenna's Hill forks into two branches: Torbay Road (Route 20) and
Logy Bay Road (Route 30). Within the city of St. John's, Torbay Road is both a major
arterial road and a significant commercial area, with many
strip malls as well as the Torbay Road Mall and, north of the
Trans-Canada Highway, the Stavanger Drive big-box retail area. The road is heavily travelled in the mornings and evenings as workers commute into and out of the city. At a point approximately 7 kilometres north of its southern terminus, Torbay Road continues northerly through the community of
Torbay, while Route 20 transfers onto the Torbay Bypass. Completed in late 2011, the two-lane bypass diverts around Torbay, with access to the major intersecting roads of Indian Meal Line and Bauline Line; prior to its construction, the highway number continued through the centre of Torbay along Torbay Road. About 7 kilometres further north near
Flatrock, Torbay Road and the Torbay Bypass reunite; both road names end at that point, while the highway number continues northerly for 9.6 kilometres under the name Pouch Cove Highway to the community of
Pouch Cove, where it becomes Main Road and continues for 5.5 kilometres to the highway's northern terminus at the
Cape St. Francis lighthouse in
Biscayan Cove. ==Major intersections==