Nova Scotia Highway 104

Highway 104
Route Transcanadienne (French)
Miners Memorial Highway Trans-Canada Highway
Highway 104 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal
Length	319.4 km (198.5 mi)
Existed	1964–present
Trans-Canada Highway segment
Length	274.1 km (170.3 mi)
West end	New Brunswick border continues as Route 2 (TCH)
Major intersections	Trunk 2 at Fort Lawrence Trunk 2 / Trunk 6 at Amherst Hwy 142 near Springhill Trunk 4 near Thomson Station Trunk 4 at Glenholme Hwy 102 near Truro Hwy 106 (TCH) near New Glasgow Trunk 7 at Antigonish Trunk 4 / Trunk 16 at Monastery Trunk 4 at Aulds Cove
East end	Hwy 105 (TCH) / Trunk 4 / Trunk 19 at Port Hastings
Cape Breton segment
Length	37.3 km (23.2 mi)
West end	Trunk 4 near Port Hawkesbury
East end	Trunk 4 near St. Peter's
Location
Country	Canada
Province	Nova Scotia
Highway system
Trans-Canada Highway Provincial highways in Nova Scotia 100-series
← Hwy 103 → Hwy 105 (TCH)

Highway 104 in Nova Scotia, Canada, runs from Fort Lawrence at the New Brunswick border near Amherst to River Tillard near St. Peter's. Except for the portion on Cape Breton Island between Port Hawkesbury and St. Peter's, it forms the main route of the Trans-Canada Highway across the province.

Highway 104 mostly supplants the former route of Trunk 4. In 1970, all sections of Trunk 4 west of New Glasgow were renumbered, although the number was added back in the Mount Thom and Wentworth Valley areas in the 1990s when new alignments of Highway 104 opened to traffic.

The provincial government named the highway the Miners Memorial Highway on 8 September 2008 one month before the 50th anniversary of the Springhill mining disaster of 23 October 1958.

Route description

View of Cobequid Pass, toll section of Highway 104 through Colchester County.

Highway 104 outside Westville, Nova Scotia (Exit 21).

The highway's present alignment measures 319 kilometers (198 mi) long, of which the western 180 km (110 mi) between the inter-provincial border with New Brunswick at Fort Lawrence through to Sutherlands River is a 4-lane divided freeway. The eastern 142 kilometers (88 mi) from Sutherlands River to River Tillard is a mixture of 2-lane controlled access freeway known as a Super 2, uncontrolled access 2-lane highway, and 4-lane divided freeway sections.

Highway 104 is divided into two distinct sections; the Trans-Canada Highway section which runs from the New Brunswick border to Port Hastings, and a smaller section on Cape Breton Island between Port Hawkesbury and St. Peter's.

Trans Canada Highway

From the inter-provincial border at Fort Lawrence, Highway 104 is a 4-lane divided freeway with posted speed limit of 110 kilometers per hour (70 mph) and runs east for 48 kilometers (30 mi) past the towns of Amherst and Oxford to Thomson Station. This section had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2 and was upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway that opened in 1993. From Thomson Station the highway runs southeast for 45 kilometers (28 mi) to Masstown, this segment is a tolled section known as the Cobequid Pass, which opened on 15 November 1997. From Masstown, the highway runs east and northeast for 14 kilometers (9 mi) to the rural community of Onslow, near Truro, and intersects Highway 102, the main 4-lane divided freeway connecting the Trans-Canada Highway with Halifax and southern Nova Scotia.

Highway 104 continues for 55 kilometers (34 mi), past Westville, to Highway 106, a branch of the Trans-Canada Highway that connects to Prince Edward Island via ferry. The highway continues east for 4 kilometers (2 mi) to Stellarton and New Glasgow, with the highway passing through Sellarton; however, New Glasgow is located just to the north of the highway. The highway continues to Sutherlands River, were it reaches the eastern extent of the end of the 4-lane divided freeway.

East of Sutherlands River, Highway 104 becomes a Super 2 with a posted speed limit of 100 kilometers per hour (60 mph). The highway runs east for 17 kilometers (11 mi) to Barney's River Station, and was built between 1964 and 1965 as a Super 2 and remains as a controlled access highway with dedicated passing lanes. East of Barney's River Station, the highway runs east for 10 kilometers (6 mi) to James River as a 4-lane divided freeway, which opened to traffic on May 18, 2023. This segment bypasses a 12-kilometer-long (7.5 mi) 2-lane uncontrolled access highway segment, which was formerly part of and is now once again part of Trunk 4. Past James River, the highway continues east for 12 kilometers (7 mi) to Addington Forks as a 4-lane divided freeway where the highway runs east for 11 kilometers (7 mi) to South River Road, along a new alignment of 4-lane divided freeway that opened on September 19, 2012. Prior to this new alignment opening, Highway 104 ran east on the present alignment of Trunk 4 and Post Road in the town of Antigonish and included three intersections controlled by traffic lights. The highway continues from South River Road as a 4-lane divided freeway, which opened October 22, 2016, for 7 kilometers (4 mi) to Dagger Woods. Prior to this new alignment opening, this section was an uncontrolled access highway (formerly Trunk 4).

From the end of the freeway section at Dagger Woods, the highway runs east for 4 kilometers (2.5 mi) to Pomquet Forks as a Super 2 and remains as a controlled access highway, although there are several at-grade intersections. East of Pomquet Forks, the highway runs east for 3 kilometers (2 mi) to Heatherton as an uncontrolled access highway (formerly Trunk 4) and speed limit reduces 90 kilometers per hour (55 mph). Past Heatherton, the highway runs east for 29 kilometers (18 mi) to Auld's Cove and speed limit increased back to 100 kilometers per hour (62 mph). At Auld's Cove, the highway becomes an uncontrolled access highway with a posted speed limit of 70 kilometers per hour (45 mph) and begins a concurrency with Trunk 4. It crosses the Strait of Canso along the 1.4-kilometer-long (0.9 mi) Canso Causeway to Port Hastings on Cape Breton Island. At Port Hastings, the highway intersects Trunk 4, Trunk 19 and Highway 105 at a roundabout where Highway 105 proceeds east carrying the Trans-Canada Highway designation.

Cape Breton Island

From the roundabout at Port Hastings, there is an 8-kilometer (5 mi) gap in Highway 104 which is connected by Trunk 4, passing the town of Port Hawkesbury. The highway reappears at the Exit 43 interchange for Trunk 4 in Melville, just outside of Port Hawkesbury. A Highway 104 bypass from Port Hastings to Melville has been proposed in the past. Concept designs have shown a new alignment of 4-lane freeway being built around the northwest side of Port Hastings, crossing Highway 105 at a new interchange near an electrical substation. The new alignment of Highway 104 would proceed east and then southeast approximately following a power line corridor to the Exit 43 interchange in Melville.

From Port Hawkesbury, the highway runs east as a controlled access Super 2 for 34 kilometers (21 mi) to its current eastern terminus at an at-grade intersection with Trunk 4 in River Tillard, near St. Peters. An extension of Highway 104 from River Tillard to Sydney River has been proposed in the past. The Nova Scotia provincial government has designated the entire length of Highway 104 from Fort Lawrence to River Tillard as a "strategic highway" to qualify for federal cost-sharing of maintenance and future upgrades. This designation has also been applied to the remaining Trunk 4 corridor in Cape Breton along the south shore of Bras d'Or Lake from St. Peters to Sydney River. It is eventually envisioned that the Trans-Canada Highway will follow the entire length of Highway 104 from Amherst to Sydney River as a 4-lane freeway, upgraded from the existing two-lane freeway and uncontrolled access sections of the highway.

History

Highway 104 was upgraded in various stages as follows:

• KM 0 to 49, section from the New Brunswick border to Thomson Station had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2 and was upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway in 1993.
• KM 49 to 92, section from Thomson Station to Masstown had been built as a 4-lane divided freeway that opened November 15, 1997; tolled section known as Cobequid Pass.
• KM 92 to 146, section from Masstown to Salt Springs had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2 and was upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway that opened in the early 1990s.
• KM 146 to 159, section from Salt Springs to Westville Road was built as a new alignment of 4-lane divided freeway that opened in the late 1990s. Prior to this new alignment opening, Highway 104 ran east on the present alignment of Trunk 4.
• KM 159 to 166, section from Westville Road to Plymouth had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2 and was upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway that opened in the early 1990s.
• KM 166 to 174, section from Plymouth to Pine Tree had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2 and was upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway that opened in fall 2011.
• KM 174 to 177, section from Pine Tree to Sutherlands River had been built in the 1960s as an uncontrolled access highway (formerly Trunk 4) and was upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway that opened in fall 2012.
• KM 177 to 219, section from Sutherlands River to Addington Forks had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2. It is in the process of being upgraded to a 4-lane divided freeway.
  • KM 198 to 219, section from Barney's River Station to James River, built in the 2020s as a 4-lane divided freeway that opened May 18, 2023.
• KM 219 to 228, section from Addington Forks to South River Road, built in the 2010s as a 4-lane divided freeway that opened September 19, 2012.
• KM 228 to 235, section from South River Road to Dagger Woods, built in the 2010s as a 4-lane divided freeway that opened October 22, 2016.
• KM 235 to 236, section from Dagger Woods to Pomquet Forks had been built in the 1960s as a Super 2.
• KM 236 to 239, section from Pomquet Forks to Heatherton had been built in the 1950s; originally part of Trunk 4.
• KM 239 to 269, section from Heatherton to Aulds Cove had been built from 1965-1969 as a Super 2.
• KM 269 to 274, section from Auld's Cove to Port Hastings had been built and upgraded in the 1950s and 1960s, with the Canso Causeway opening in 1955.
• KM 282 to 319, section from Port Hawkesbury to River Tillard has been built in the 1970s as a Super 2.

Future

The Province of Nova Scotia awarded the P3 contract that will twin a 38-kilometer (24 mi) section of Highway 104 between Sutherlands River and Antigonish to Dexter Nova Alliance. As part the project, there will be 28 kilometers (17 mi) of existing highway upgraded and a 10-kilometer (6 mi) new, realigned section; the bypassed section of Highway 104 between Barney's River Station and Marshy Hope would revert to being part of Trunk 4. Construction began in the spring of 2020, with a completion date of no later than the end of 2023.

The province of Nova Scotia has proposed construction of a new 84-kilometre (52 mi) 2 lane arterial from the current end of Highway 104 at St. Peter's to Highway 125 at Sydney. This highway would travel mostly east of the current Trunk 4 and open as a Super 2. It would serve as a bypass of Trunk 4 and likely take designation of the Trans Canada Highway rather than Highway 105. When completed, this would provide nearly continuous controlled access highway across Nova Scotia on the Trans Canada Highway. Construction costs are estimated to be approximately $500 million and tolls have been proposed in the past. This project is currently not on the province's 5-year highway plan.

Exit list

County	Location	km	mi	Exit	Destinations	Notes
New Brunswick border		0.0	0.0	Continues into New Brunswick as Route 2 (TCH) west – Moncton Missaguash River Bridge crosses the Missaguash River
Cumberland	Fort Lawrence	0.7	0.43	1	Trunk 2 east (Laplanche Street) to Trunk 6 – Amherst, Fort Lawrence	Eastbound signed as Exit 1A
	Amherst	5.2	3.2	3	Trunk 6 east (Victoria Street, Sunrise Trail) – Amherst, Tatamagouche
		8.7	5.4	4	Trunk 2 (South Albion Street) – Amherst, Springhill, Parrsboro
	​	29.4	18.3	5	Hwy 142 south – Springhill, Parrsboro
	Oxford	39.7	24.7	6	Route 321 to Route 204 – Oxford, Pugwash, River Philip
	​	48.5	30.1	7	Trunk 4 – Mahoney's Corner, Wentworth, Folly Lake	West end of Cobequid Pass tolled section
		59.2	36.8	8	To Trunk 4 / Wentworth-Collingwood Road – Westchester Station, Collingwood
Colchester	​	72.6	45.1	Cobequid Pass Toll Plaza
		83.3	51.8	10	To Trunk 2 / Trunk 4 – Great Village, Bass River, Londonderry	East end of Cobequid Pass tolled section
		89.0	55.3	11	Trunk 4 to Trunk 2 – Glenholme, Economy, Five Islands, Folly Lake, Wentworth
	Masstown	92.4	57.4	12	Trunk 2 / Trunk 4 – Masstown, Glenholme, Lower Debert
	​	97.6	60.6	13	Debert, Lower Onslow
	Onslow	106.3	66.1	15	Hwy 102 south – Truro, Halifax	Exit 15 on Hwy 102
	Valley	115.6	71.8	17	To Route 311 / Trunk 4 – Bible Hill, Truro, Tatamagouche	Eastbound exit, westbound entrance
		116.2	72.2	17	To Route 311 / Trunk 4 – Bible Hill, Truro, Tatamagouche	Westbound exit, eastbound entrance
	​	125.5	78.0	18	Stevens Cross Road – Kemptown, Riversdale
Pictou	​	132.7	82.5	18A	Trunk 4 – Mount Thom
	Salt Springs	146.3	90.9	19	To Trunk 4 / Route 376 – Salt Springs, Central West River, Durham
	​	154.9	96.3	20	To Trunk 4 – Pleasant Valley, Greenhill, Union Centre
	Westville	159.2	98.9	21	Trunk 4 to Route 289 / Cowan Street – Alma, Westville
	​	160.8	99.9	22	Hwy 106 (TCH) north – Pictou, P.E.I. Ferry	Exit 1 on Hwy 106
	New Glasgow, Stellarton	163.8	101.8	23	Route 289 / Route 4 – New Glasgow, Westville, Trenton
		165.0	102.5	24	Route 374 – New Glasgow, Stellarton, Trenton, Sheet Harbour
		165.7	103.0	Crosses the East River of Pictou
		166.2	103.3	25	Route 348 (East River Road) – New Glasgow, Stellarton, Trenton
	​	169.8	105.5	26	Route 347 to Trunk 4 – Thorburn, Sherbrooke
	Sutherlands River	177.2	110.1	27	Trunk 4 / Route 245 north – Merigomish, Pine Tree, Little Harbour
	​	180.1– 195.5	111.9– 121.5	15.4 km (9.6 mi) gap in divided freeway (Twinning work underway to complete freeway between Sutherlands River and Barney's River Station)
	Barney's River Station	195.9	121.7	29	Trunk 4 – Kenzieville, Barney's River Station
Antigonish	James River	209.5	130.2	30	To Trunk 4 / Beaver Mountain Road – James River, Marshy Hope
	Addington Forks	218.7	135.9	31	Trunk 4 – Addington Forks, James River, Brierly Brook
	Antigonish	221.0	137.3	32	Trunk 7 to Trunk 4 / Route 337 / Route 245 – Antigonish, Eastern Shore
		223.4	138.8	33	To Trunk 4 – Antigonish, Beech Hill
	Lower South River	228.9	142.2	35	To Trunk 4 / Route 316 – Lower South River, Pomquet, Taylors Road
	​	232.0	144.2	End of divided freeway
	​	236.1	146.7	35B	Pomquet Monks Head Road, Pomquet River Road – Pomquet, St. Andrews	At-grade
	Heatherton	238.1	147.9	36	Summerside Road	At-grade
		239.3	148.7	36A	Trunk 4 east – Afton, Tracadie	At-grade
		242.5	150.7	36B	Afton Road north to Trunk 4 – Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation, Afton, Tracadie	Bayside Travel Centre located at interchange
	Monastery	251.1	156.0	37	Trunk 4 to Trunk 16 south – Monastery, Guysborough, Tracadie
	​	261.2	162.3	38	To Trunk 4 – Havre Boucher, Frankville	Eastbound exit, westbound entrance
		262.5	163.1	38	To Trunk 4 – Havre Boucher, Frankville	Westbound exit, eastbound entrance
	Aulds Cove	269.4	167.4	39	Trunk 4 west – Havre Boucher	West end of Trunk 4 overlap; at-grade
		270.7	168.2	40	Route 344 south – Mulgrave, St. Francis Harbour	At-grade
Strait of Canso		272.0– 273.4	169.0– 169.9	Canso Causeway
Inverness	Port Hastings	274.1	170.3	41	Hwy 105 (TCH) east – Chéticamp, Baddeck, Sydney Trunk 4 east to Hwy 104 (Fleur-de-lis Trail) – Port Hawkesbury, St. Peter's, Sydney Trunk 19 north (Ceilidh Trail) – Inverness, Port Hood, Margaree Forks	Roundabout; exit 1 on Hwy 105; Trans-Canada Highway follows Hwy 105 east
7.9 km (4.9 mi) gap in Hwy 104
Inverness	Port Hawkesbury	282.1	175.3	43	Trunk 4 – Cleveland, Lower River Inhabitants, Canso Causeway	Signed as Hwy 104
Richmond	Lower River Inhabitants	291.8	181.3	44	Cleveland, Lower River Inhabitants, Port Malcolm	At-grade
	Evanston	293.6	182.4	45	Evanston, Whiteside	At-grade
	Louisdale	304.7	189.3	46	To Route 320 / Route 206 – Louisdale, Arichat, Grande Anse
	Cannes	315.2	195.9	47	Sporting Mountain Road – River Bourgeois, Cannes
	River Tillard	319.4	198.5	48	Trunk 4 – River Bourgeois, St. Peter's, Sydney	Eastern terminus (at-grade); through traffic follows Trunk 4 east
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       Incomplete access        Tolled       Route transition Note: Exit numbers in Nova Scotia are sequential.