401: Rebalancing Streets for Active School Travel: A Panel Discussion of Lessons Learned from School Street Pilots in Ontario

September 21, 2022

4:15PM - 5:15PM

School Streets (SSs) represent an innovative approach to street rebalancing that is gaining popularity worldwide in response to three related problems: declining rates of active school travel among elementary school-aged children; unsafe conditions around school sites due to high levels of vehicular traffic congestion; and the climate crisis. By closing streets adjacent to elementary schools to through-traffic at the beginning and at the end of the school day, SSs disrupt the status quo of children being driven to and from school, while centring children’s rights as legitimate occupiers and users of these public spaces.

SSs offer numerous potential benefits for children, including: providing a safer and calmer experience when coming and going from school without having to navigate vehicular traffic; fostering opportunities to develop skills in independent mobility; promoting health and readiness to learn by building exercise into the school journey; creating space for children and parents to informally interact outside the school; and improving air quality and reducing noise pollution around the school site. Through all these mechanisms, SSs challenge prevailing assumptions about what streets are for and for whom, while prioritizing the safety, security, and well-being of children over the convenience of motorists.

Despite their potential, SSs are only starting to emerge in Canadian cities. This panel consists of representatives from organizations in Toronto, York Region, Mississauga, Hamilton, and Kingston that are taking the lead on implementing SSs in Ontario. Panelists will share the lessons they have learned from SS pilots in these communities about what makes these initiatives work, including choosing appropriate school sites, generating community and stakeholder buy-in, procuring closure permits and equipment, volunteer recruitment and retention, and measuring success. Session attendees will be able to apply these insights to the school travel planning approaches being implemented in the communities in which they work.
 

Speakers