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>Highway 1A is the name of three main spurs off the Alberta portion of the Trans-Canada Highway. However, it is not the only name used for spurs off Highway 1 - Highway 1X is another such designation. These highways, however, are not part of the Trans-Canada Highway network, and only have Alberta's provincial primary highway shields instead of the ones used for the Trans-Canada Highway.
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Bow Valley Parkway
The westernmost section of the 1A routes is also known as the Bow Valley Parkway. It begins near Lake Louise within Banff National Park, and runs eastward, paralleling the main Highway 1 to the north, though it provides more immediate access to attractions such as Castle Mountain and Johnston Canyon. This spur terminates at its junction with Highway 1 six kilometres west of Banff.
This spur has a reduced speed limit of 60 km/h (40 mph), and provides an excellent opportunity to view wildlife at various times of the year. Parks Canada has introduced carefully planned and marked pullovers to enhance and educate visitors about the region. The Bow Valley Parkway is the only parkway between Banff and Lake Louise that allows great mountain scenery, waterfalls, and various view points of the nearby rivers and creeks. It was the original highway that connected the valley and holds heritage appeal to many locals.
Bow Valley Trail
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The second of the 1A routes, known as the Bow Valley Trail, begins on its western end in Canmore, off of the Trans-Canada Highway turnoff near Palliser Trail and Harvie Heights Road, both major roads in Canmore. While in Canmore, it carries "Bow Valley Trail" as the name of the street as well as the highway itself. There, it heads eastbound (passing the Trans-Canada Highway once), along the Canadian Pacific Railway tracks, until it reaches the town of Exshaw. From Exshaw, Bow Valley Trail heads to the northeast, past Highway 1X southbound to Highway 40 northbound.
Just east of Highway 1X, Bow Valley Trail narrows and the speed limit is reduced to 80 km/h for approximately thirty kilometres as it passes through the Stoney Indian Reserve. There are warning signs that there may be livestock on the road, so be careful. Eight kilometres from the eastern edge of the reserve, the highway passes north of the hamlet of Morley, which serves as the reserve's main townsite. Seven kilometres west of Highway 40, the highway leaves the reserve. As the highway leaves the reserve, it widens and the speed limit increases back to 100 km/h. Just after Bow Valley Trail widens, it skirts the north shore of Ghost Lake, a manmade glacier lake that is a popular spot for Calgary's boating and sailing enthusiasts in the summer, as well as ice sailing in the winter. The lake also supplies most of the water power for Calgary through TransAlta Utilities.
From Highway 40, Bow Valley Trail proceeds towards the east, and then slightly to the southeast, before reaching the town of Cochrane, where it intersects with Highway 22. There, the highway proceeds a short distance to the southeast. The highway widens to 4 lanes just west of Lochend Road until it reaches Calgary, where it is known as Crowchild Trail, a major north-south expressway (although it travels in a southeasterly direction from the city limits to 24th Avenue NW) through the northwest and southwest parts of the city. While within the Calgary city limits, it crosses Stoney Trail (Highway 201) as well as a number of major streets (including Sarcee Trail northbound and Shaganappi Trail) before reuniting with the Trans-Canada Highway (known as 16th Avenue North in Calgary) near McMahon Stadium and the University of Calgary. Although Crowchild Trail extends to the south past this point into southwest Calgary (mostly as a full freeway), it does not carry any highway designations beyond the Trans-Canada Highway. Both the Bow Valley Parkway and Bow Valley Trail parallel the Canadian Pacific Railway main line for most of their distance.
Calgary to Chestermere
The other Highway 1A also begins at the city of Calgary. It is currently disputed as to the location of the western terminus, and different maps will either have a short version of this Highway 1A which begins at Deerfoot Trail (Highway 2) and 17th Avenue South (an east-west principal arterial road leading into east Calgary), or a longer version which begins at the intersection of 16th Avenue North (Trans-Canada Highway) and 14th Street West (a north-south principal arterial road leading into north Calgary) near the SAIT campus. Some maps also indicate that the Canmore-Calgary and Calgary-Chestermere routes form one single highway. Although real-world evidence seems to indicate that the shorter version is indeed correct, the longer version will be described here.
The highway begins southbound on 14th Street West and continues past the Bow River to 9th Avenue South (eastbound) or 6th Avenue South (westbound), and continuing through the city's downtown core. After the highway passes Blackfoot Trail, it becomes 17th Avenue South (International Avenue), passing Deerfoot Trail (and the short version terminus), which continues on an easterly route through east Calgary and eventually out of the city. After the road leaves Calgary, it is known as Township Road 242 (continuing in an easterly direction) until reaching the town of Chestermere, where it takes a turn to the northeast. Within Chestermere it retains the 17th Avenue South street name used in Calgary (even though it is no longer in that place in the grid). Highway 1A then ends when it meets up with the Trans-Canada Highway on the eastern edge of Chestermere.
Some maps add an additional leg to Highway 1A within Calgary, connecting it to the Bow Valley Trail version. These maps show 1A branching off Crowchild Trail at Banff Trail N.W., to 16th Avenue N.W., proceeding east (and overlapping with Highway 1) to 14th Street, and then south as described above.
Highway 1X
Seven kilometres east of Exshaw, on the edge of the Stoney Indian Reserve, a spur highway called Highway 1X runs south from 1A to join with the Trans-Canada Highway. This spur is primarily an access point for the First Nations lands in the area, as well as a shortcut between Highway 1 and 1A. Only 4.5 kilometres in length, it is one of Alberta's shortest provincial-grade highways.
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