17 Avenue SE (Calgary)


Neighborhoods

  • Inglewood
  • Albert Park/Radisson Heights
  • Southview
  • Forest Lawn
  • Penbrooke Meadows
  • Forest Lawn Industrial
  • Red Carpet
  • Applewood Park
  • Westmere
  • Lakeside Greens
  • The Cove
  • East Lakeview Shores
17 Avenue SE is a major arterial road in east Calgary, Alberta. 17 Avenue SE is the focal point of the International Avenue Business Revitalization Zone and the main roadway through the former town of Forest Lawn. Chestermere Boulevard is a major arterial road and the eastern extension of 17 Avenue SE through Chestermere, Alberta, Canada. The roadway is a former alignment of Highway 1A.
with the Chestermere Boulevard crossing and interchange with the Trans-Canada Highway.

Route description

The west end of 17 Avenue SE begins with a small segment at a 5-way intersection with 9 Avenue SE and 15 Street SE, crossing the Canadian Pacific Railway, and ending at 17A Street SE. It begins again just to the south at the Blackfoot Trail / 19 Street SE intersection and crosses the Bow River via the Cushing Bridge before intersecting Deerfoot Trail. Prior to the construction of Blackfoot Trail, 17 Avenue SE was a continuous roadway and the section between 19 Street SE and Deerfoot Trail is now generally referred to as part of Blackfoot Trail. 19 Street SE serves as the main access between 9 Avenue SE and Blackfoot Trail / 17 Avenue SE.
East of Deerfoot Trail, 17 Avenue SE leaves the Bow River valley and intersects Barlow Trail, though it is only accessible for westbound traffic. It passes through the communities of Albert Park/Radisson Heights, Southview, and Forest Lawn, and continues east past Elliston Park before intersecting Stoney Trail. It transitions into rural farmland and at 116 Street SE, enters into the city of Chestermere, where it becomes Chestermere Boulevard. It ends at the Highway 1 interchange, where it continues east as Range Road 243.

History

17 Avenue SE is the original alignment of Highway 1 through eastern Calgary. In 1949, Highway 1 was rerouted to follow 16 Avenue N, bypassing downtown Calgary and Forest Lawn, and 17 Avenue SE designated as Highway 1A. The section of Highway 1A west of Deerfoot Trail was dropped in the 1970s, resulting in Highway 1A being a short alternate route into Calgary and its southeast industrial parks. In 1993, the International Avenue BRZ was established resulting in 17 Avenue SE being nicknamed as International Avenue. In 2007, the City of Calgary annexed land from Rocky View County up to Range Road 284 ; while in 2009, Chestermere annexed land up to the Calgary city limit, resulting in Highway 1A no longer travelling through a rural municipality and signalling a possible end to the Highway 1A designation. In 2013, the province of Alberta decommissioned Highway 1A, and as of 2016, remnant Highway 1A signage still remains on Deerfoot Trail and sections of 17 Avenue SE within Calgary; however, it has been removed along Stoney Trail, through Chestermere, and along the Trans-Canada Highway.

Future

The City of Calgary considers 17 Avenue SE between 26 Street SE and 60 Street SE as a Main Street, slated to be a mixed-use residential and commercial corridor. The City of Calgary is planning to construct a transitway along the centre of 17 Avenue SE; Phase 1 would involve construction between 28 Street SE and Hubalta Road and Phase 2 crossing Deerfoot Trail and connecting with 9 Avenue SE. Phase 1 construction is slated start in 2017 while Phase 2 is in the design stage. Long-term plans call for the mixed-use corridor and transitway to extend east into Chestermere.

Major intersections

From west to east.