The first ever Markham School Streets program was initiated by York Region District School Board (YRDSB) in partnership with the City of Markham to test out an innovative approach to encouraging active travel to school called School Streets.
Markham’s inaugural School Streets program was launched in May 2022 at John McCrae P.S. It ran four times in total on each subsequent Wednesday in the month of May. The goals of the program were to spur greater interest in active travel amongst the John McCrae P.S. community, monitor the impacts on student travel habits and local neighbourhood congestion, increase perceptions of road safety, and evaluate whether School Streets programs are suitable for Markham’s low-density neighborhoods.
This evaluation of the program was conducted by The Centre for Active Transportation (TCAT), the City of Markham, and the YRDSB. Students, parents/guardians, school staff, residents impacted by the road closure, and Markham residents, in general, were surveyed both before and during the School Streets program. Results were analyzed to find trends in feedback across the respondents.