Islington Avenue is a north-south route travelling through the City of Toronto and York Region. It runs from Lake Shore Boulevard West at 7th Street in the former Town of New Toronto to Highway 27 at the former town of Kleinburg, in the City of Vaughan north of Toronto. Islington Avenue is approximately 30.2 kilometres (18.7 mi) long. It runs through the former city of Etobicoke, serving as one of its main north-south arterials.
History
The street was first surveyed in 1799 (at the time, it was known as the Middle Road).[2] The originating section of Islington Avenue between Lake Shore Blvd. West and Birmingham Street in New Toronto, was originally Seventh Street until 1980, when Islington Avenue was extended south of Horner Avenue. This connection required a new alignment north of Birmingham Street, which crossed over to the top of Sixth Street before continuing north over the CNR Railway yards.
The stretch beyond Albion Road into York Region was originally part of a road connecting the former villages of Woodbridge and Weston. Beyond Woodbridge, the road continued north through Kleinburg as Islington Avenue does today.
At the end of the Second World War the street was widened, causing the loss of almost all historic buildings.[3]
In York Region, Islington Avenue was originally designated as York Regional Road 7, But In 1997, Islington Avenue was later changed to York Regional Road 17 due to Highway 7 being former highway to a York regional road.
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Islington subway station opened on Bloor St in 1968. Today the 110 Islington South serves the street south of the station,[5] while the 37 Islington runs along the street from the station to Steeles. [6]
