30km Speed Limit Public Engagement

As part of our ongoing commitment to advancing road safety, the City is exploring the possibility of reducing speed limits to 30 km/h in Community Safety Zones to protect our most vulnerable road users. 

The City currently has no plans to reduce speed limits outside of Community Safety Zones. If implemented, the speed limit reduction would only be implemented in Community Safety Zones.

The policy review assesses how a 30 km/h speed limit aligns with broader road safety strategies. This review will examine existing traffic policies and their effectiveness, the alignment of speed limits with road classification and design, and how enforcement, education and engineering strategies can support compliance.

All school zones in Vaughan are designated as Community Safety Zones. Community Safety Zones can also include roadways near schools, neighbourhoods, daycare centres, playgrounds, parks, hospitals and seniors’ residences. These zones are meant to encourage drivers to slow down as they bring awareness to the presence of vulnerable road users. Reducing speed would further encourage safe travel and support traffic calming in the community. 

The main goals of this project are to: 

• engage residents and stakeholders through an inclusive consultation process to gather feedback and assess the level of support for lowering speed limits to 30 km/h in Community Safety Zones.   
• use the results of the resident and stakeholder consultation findings to determine if changes should be undertaken to Vaughan’s Speed Limit Policy and Community Safety Zone Policy. 

As part of our ongoing commitment to road safety, the City has launched an Automated Speed Enforcement program. This program uses cameras and speed measurement devices to enforce speed limits in identified areas.

Automated speed enforcement and lowered speed limits are designed to improve safety in Community Safety Zones by reducing speeding and protecting vulnerable road users. Lower speed limits help minimize the severity of collisions, while automated speed enforcement provides consistent enforcement to encourage compliance. Together, they create a safer environment by reinforcing responsible driving behaviour and ensuring speed limits are followed.

Lowering speed limits does not always lead to compliance. Automated speed enforcement helps reinforce safe driving by encouraging consistent adherence to speed limits, especially in high-risk areas. The City will monitor the impact of both measures to evaluate their effectiveness while considering public feedback and mobility impacts.

There are many ways you can share your feedback, including:

• attending pop-up events at libraries, community centres and City events 
• participating in virtual Public Information Sessions 
• joining a focus group
• taking an online survey

Community engagement plays a vital role in shaping the decision-making process. Feedback collected through surveys, public consultations and stakeholder discussions will help the City assess community concerns about speeding, perceptions of road safety and whether lowering speed limits will be an added and effective traffic safety measure. This will be reviewed carefully alongside data on similar speed reduction programs in other jurisdictions.

The engagement program's results will be shared with residents and stakeholders who have signed up for our project mailing list at traffic.services@vaughan.ca and participated in the project. They will also be posted on the project’s webpage.

If approved, the proposed changes will support the safe travel of all road users, especially those most vulnerable, such as children and older adults. Based on the results, the 30 km/h speed limit will only apply to designated Community Safety Zones.

The City recognizes that reducing speed limits in Community Safety Zones represents a significant change for residents. If speed reductions move forward, the City will take a phased, data-driven approach to implementation based on speed data, compliance and collision trends in Community Safety Zones. The City will also work with York Regional Police to understand enforcement and compliance levels.

Speed limit enforcement will include traditional York Regional Police enforcement along with a combination of signage, traffic calming features and automated speed enforcement cameras rotating in designated Community Safety Zones.