Manitoba Highway 42

Provincial Trunk Highway 42 (PTH 42) is a short provincial highway in the southwest region of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It runs from PTH 16 in the town of Shoal Lake to PTH 41 just east of the French-speaking village of St. Lazare.

PTH 42 provides a direct east-west connection through Birtle from PTH 16. As a result, the stretch between Birtle and Shoal Lake is heavily used by trucks as a direct access. The speed limit is 100 km/h (60 mph) east of Birtle and 90 km/h (55 mph) between PTH 83 and St. Lazare.

Route description
PTH 42 begins in the Rural Municipality of Ellice - Archie at a T-intersection with PTH 41 just east of the town of St. Lazare. It heads south for roughly 1 km before curving due eastward near the edge of the Assiniboine River valley. The highway crosses PR 568 immediately before entering the Rural Municipality of Prairie View, traveling eastward through rural farmland for the next several kilometers to become concurrent (overlapped) with PTH 83 and enter the town of Birtle. The two head south for a short distance before curving onto Main Street, heading east to cross the Birdtail River into downtown. The head's straight through the center of downtown, with PTH 83 splitting off and heading south in some neighborhoods on the eastern side of town. PTH 42 leaves Birtle and heads east through rural areas for the next several kilometers, junctioning with PR 472 and crossing some wetlands before entering the Rural Municipality of Yellowhead. The highway goes through switchback, immediately having an intersection with PR 264 south of Kelloe, to enter the town of Shoal Lake. It curves northward as it travels past some golf courses along the coast of Shoal Lake to have an intersection with The Drive, which provides access to downtown and PTH 21. PTH 42 travels through a neighborhood, crosses a railroad, and past a few businesses before coming to an end the intersection with PTH 16 (Yellowhead Highway).

The entire length of Manitoba Highway 42 is a rural, paved, two-lane highway.

History
The highway first appeared on the 1956 Manitoba Highway Map as PTH 41A. Originally, the route served as a short connector spur of 16 km between PTH 41 and PTH 4/83 near Birtle.

The section of the route between Shoal Lake and Birtle was originally part of PTH 16, which was then known as Highway 4. When the current section of PTH 16 was opened to traffic in 1958, the highway was extended to Shoal Lake.

The highway was redesignated as PTH 42 in 1968.