FAQs

Traffic calming is a series of measures a City can implement to ease traffic concerns through physical changes (e.g., signage or road markings) and/or behaviour change (e.g., education or enforcement).

A Traffic Calming Policy: 

• is an official municipal document.  
• outlines guidelines to make roads safer.  
• outlines the process for initiating a traffic calming study.  
• sets criteria to evaluate a traffic calming request.  
• is paired with a toolkit (or menu) of solutions for City staff to consider in a neighbourhood.  

A Traffic Calming Toolkit is a menu of potential solutions a City might consider to address traffic concerns on a specific street. The Toolkit recognizes that no potential “fix” is one-size-fits-all. Toolkits typically include a series of physical road changes (e.g., speed bumps, rumble strips, stop signs, etc.). They can also include behaviour change initiatives such as road safety campaigns and traffic enforcement. The Toolkit is paired with a set of evaluation criteria, which are used to assess if a particular tool is the right fit for an identified area. The Toolkit supports City staff decision-making when assessing the design of streets in our community.

The Traffic Calming Toolbox provided in Appendix A of the Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Policy details the measures available and any restrictions which may apply to your neighbourhood.

The following is intended to help clarify some common questions about traffic calming tools, and what is not a traffic calming tool.

Traffic Calming Tools

Not Traffic Calming Tools

The City is formalizing the process to receive, evaluate and address traffic calming requests.  The process provides Peterborough with a fair and standardized approach. The Policy incorporates best practices in traffic calming.  

The final Council-approved Policy includes: 

• A clear process to determine if traffic calming is appropriate for a given roadway. 
• A set of typical traffic calming “tools”. 
• A neighbourhood engagement framework for future traffic calming studies. 

The Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Policy was approved by City Council in May of 2021. The policy document was created in conjunction with five pilot projects, one in each ward of the City. Additional information on these pilot projects as well as on the policy can be found at connectptbo.ca/trafficcalming.

Phase 1 of the project focused on the following five neighbourhoods:

• Westridge Boulevard / Cherryhill Road – Monaghan Ward  
• Franklin Drive – Northcrest Ward  
• Auburn Street / Dunlop Street – Ashburnham Ward  
• Sherburne Street / Morrow Street / Montgomery Street – Otonabee Ward  
• Romaine Street – Town Ward  

A map of ongoing studies can be found on the Traffic Calming Study Locations on the ConnectPTBO website.

Phase 2 of the project focuses on the following three neighbourhoods:

• High Street between Landsdowne Street and Sherbrooke Street (Ward 1 – Otonabee) 
• Highland Road between Chemong Road and Fairbairn Street (Ward 5 – Northcrest) 
• Whitefield Drive/Golfview Road/Silverdale Road (Ward 1 – Otonabee)

A map of ongoing studies can be found on the Traffic Calming Study Locations on the ConnectPTBO website.

In November 2021, the City of Peterborough launched Phase 2 of its Calm Streets PTBO traffic calming program. The project team spent December 2021 gathering input from community members about traffic issues in the three study areas through an online questionnaire. The City held workshops for each study area in January 2022 to discuss potential traffic calming solutions. In March 2022, the City conducted a second round of workshops (and a third for the Whitefield Drive, Golfview Road, and Silverdale Road study area) to present the traffic calming plans developed with input from the community for input and refinement. The engagement process culminated with a neighbourhood survey of properties in each study area to determine the level of support for the proposed plan. Individuals could complete this survey online or by returning the form by mail.

City of Peterborough staff will present a report to Council with recommendations on how to proceed with each traffic calming plan, informed by the neighbourhood survey results. Plans approved by City Council for implementation will be installed for a trial period to understand potential challenges. During this period, the City will gather input from local property owners and adjust the plan if necessary.

At the end of the trial, City Council will decide whether to make the traffic calming plan permanent, incorporating any revisions identified through the trial installation.

There are three methods available to submit a Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Study request: 

1. The preferred method is to use the online form at connectptbo.ca/trafficcalming. This link also contains additional information about the traffic calming policy and process, as well as examples of previous traffic calming projects.
2. Email the Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Study request form to calmstreetsptbo@peterborough.ca
3. Print and mail the completed Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Study request form to the following address:

City of Peterborough Traffic Department

Municipal Operations Center

791 Webber Avenue

Peterborough, ON

K9J 8N3

A study request goes through a seven-stage process. The two documents linked below detail the process and the assessments must go through.

The following diagram provides a detailed version of Peterborough's Neighbourhood Traffic Calming Study process. You can also access a high-resolution version of this diagram on Page 13 of the Traffic Calming Policy.

The following table details the City's draft screening criteria to evaluate if a neighbourhood needs traffic calming. You can also access a high-resolution version of this diagram on Page 9 of the Traffic Calming Policy.

All locations are eligible for some type of traffic calming measures. Physical traffic calming measures are only available for local roads, low capacity collector roads, and high capacity collector roads which pass the initial screening criteria. Arterial roads and other roads which do not pass the initial screening criteria are restricted to education and enforcement measures only. The map of arterial and collector roadways can be used to determine what type of measures are appropriate for your street.

The following two tables provide the criteria for prioritizing traffic calming on local streets, low capacity collectors, and high capacity collectors. You can also access a high-resolution version of this diagram on Pages 14 and 15 of the Traffic Calming Policy.

Prioritization Criteria for Local Streets and Low-Capacity Collectors (page 14)

Prioritization Criteria for High-Capacity Collectors (page 15)

The Traffic Calming Toolbox details educational and enforcement measures which are available at locations which do not qualify for physical traffic calming measures.

Questions should be directed to the project team by emailing CalmStreetsPTBO@peterborough.ca.

The City will be consulting residents, property owners and people who work in the identified Phase 2 study areas. Feedback will be collected through scheduled virtual workshops, an online questionnaire, and communications with the City and consulting team. These opportunities will be available to those in the identified study areas.

To stay up to date on Phase 2, or contact the project team with any comments or questions at:

Phone:  (705) 742-7777

Email:   CalmStreetsPTBO@peterborough.ca

The City has now completed the Calm Streets PTBO traffic calming program pilot. Through this two-phase pilot, the City has developed and tested a new traffic calming policy, resident request assessment process, and community engagement strategy, and applied this framework in eight neighbourhoods.

In Phase 1, the City of Peterborough selected a study area in each of the City’s five wards to trial this new approach to undertaking traffic calming studies. The City involved residents in the studies through an initial traffic issues questionnaire, two rounds of community workshops, engagement with a team of Calm Streets PTBO Community Ambassadors, and a final neighbourhood survey.

Phase 2 continued the program trial with traffic calming studies for three additional areas. Through this phase, the City made further refinements and improvements to the engagement process, including increased “on-the-ground” engagement between the Calm Streets PTBO Community Ambassador team and study area residents.

Sign up for project updates on the Sign up tab on www.connectptbo.ca/TrafficCalming to receive email updates!