Uxbridge street earns dubious honour on annual Worst Roads list

An unassuming two-and-a-half block stretch of road just west of Uxbridge’s downtown made the top ten on a list the Township is not likely to crow about: the CAA’s annual Worst Roads in Ontario.

Cedar Street North, a mostly residential road running north (natch) of Brock Street – Uxbridge’s main east-west drag – earned the ignominious honour in this year’s list, the only road in Durham Region to be named.

Cedar Street North finished seventh in the province in the annual poll, which asks Ontario drivers, cyclists, transit riders and pedestrians to vote in the CAA Worst Roads campaign.

The road also finished second in the regional category, which looks at roads in Durham, Peel, Halton and York regions, behind Hurontario Street in Mississauga.

A second Uxbridge street, Maple Street, finished second on that list, followed by Trulls Road in Courtice.

With potholes, congestion, poor road signs and other safety concerns top of mind, voting for Ontario’s Worst Roads helps shine the spotlight on where more work is needed and has often paved the way for safer roads across the province since the campaign was first launched in 2003.

Topping the list this year is Aberdeen Avenue in Hamilton, which knocked city neighbour Barton Street East from first place for the first time in three years. Eglinton Avenue West in Toronto is second on the list while Barton and County Road 49 (Prince Edward County) placed third and fourth.

“Poor roads affect us all. They make us late, cause delivery delays, contribute to congestion and, most importantly, can endanger those who use them,” CAA officials said online in releasing the 2024 list.

CAA kicked off its 21st Worst Roads advocacy campaign back in March and online public voting ended April 19. Through the initiative, the agency attempts to give decision-makers in municipalities across Ontario a snapshot of the roads the public perceives as not meeting expectations.

The Top 10:

1. Aberdeen Avenue, Hamilton
2. Eglinton Avenue West, Toronto
3. Barton Street East, Hamilton
4. County Road 49, Prince Edward
5. Hurontario Street, Mississauga
6. Bloor Street West, Toronto
7. Cedar Street North, Uxbridge
8. Finch Avenue West, Toronto
9. Lake Shore Boulevard East, Toronto
10. Laclie Street, Orillia