Active Transportation Master Plan

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Town of Aurora is developing Aurora Connects, an Active Transportation Master Plan (ATMP), which is scheduled to be completed in 2024. The Town has retained WSP Canada Inc. to support the development of the Aurora Connects Plan. The details of the Plan will come together through both technical evaluations and engagement with residents and stakeholders, but the overall goals of the Plan are to:

  • Build upon the Town's existing trails and active transportation infrastructure (bike lanes, sidewalks etc) to develop a continuous Town-wide network that connects to all neighbourhoods within Aurora and adjacent municipalities;
  • Create more opportunities for residents to try active transportation supported by education and encouragement efforts;
  • Collaborate with Town Advisory Committees, York Region, local businesses, community members and other stakeholders to ensure that community values are reflected in the Plan, and that it is widely supported as it heads towards implementation.

The process of developing the Plan will be completed in two phases:

Phase 1: Background and Technical Review

In order to chart a path forward, it is important to have a thorough understanding of where the Town currently is. The Background and Technical review will help to lay the foundations for the ATMP, building an understanding of the key stakeholders, planning context, existing facilities and the history of active transportation in the Town.

Phase 2: Where We Are Going

With the foundations laid, we will work closely with key stakeholders and members of the public to chart a course forward for the Town of Aurora to become one of Ontario's Active Transportation leaders. We will develop recommendations for a well-connected, all-ages and abilities active transportation network to connect people to where they live, work and play in Aurora, with a special focus on the Town’s key trip generators like the historic downtown and the GO Station. The Aurora Connects Plan will include realistic implementation timelines to construct new infrastructure, provide accurate costing for those investments and suggest tools to pay for them. It will also develop a plan to enhance the social infrastructure of active transportation in the Town, building a network of supportive stakeholders and providing them with tasks that can help to build a stronger culture of activity in the Town as it grows.

Building the Plan: Discussion Papers

As the Plan progresses, we will release Discussion Papers for public review and comment. These discussion papers will, eventually, become Chapters of the final Aurora Connects document. Each Discussion Paper will build upon the previous papers, providing a high degree of accountability and transparency in terms of how this Plan is being developed. Once all feedback on each Discussion Paper has been incorporated, the final version will be posted, with the expectation that the information presented in that paper will be the same information presented in the final ATMP.

Town of Aurora is developing Aurora Connects, an Active Transportation Master Plan (ATMP), which is scheduled to be completed in 2024. The Town has retained WSP Canada Inc. to support the development of the Aurora Connects Plan. The details of the Plan will come together through both technical evaluations and engagement with residents and stakeholders, but the overall goals of the Plan are to:

  • Build upon the Town's existing trails and active transportation infrastructure (bike lanes, sidewalks etc) to develop a continuous Town-wide network that connects to all neighbourhoods within Aurora and adjacent municipalities;
  • Create more opportunities for residents to try active transportation supported by education and encouragement efforts;
  • Collaborate with Town Advisory Committees, York Region, local businesses, community members and other stakeholders to ensure that community values are reflected in the Plan, and that it is widely supported as it heads towards implementation.

The process of developing the Plan will be completed in two phases:

Phase 1: Background and Technical Review

In order to chart a path forward, it is important to have a thorough understanding of where the Town currently is. The Background and Technical review will help to lay the foundations for the ATMP, building an understanding of the key stakeholders, planning context, existing facilities and the history of active transportation in the Town.

Phase 2: Where We Are Going

With the foundations laid, we will work closely with key stakeholders and members of the public to chart a course forward for the Town of Aurora to become one of Ontario's Active Transportation leaders. We will develop recommendations for a well-connected, all-ages and abilities active transportation network to connect people to where they live, work and play in Aurora, with a special focus on the Town’s key trip generators like the historic downtown and the GO Station. The Aurora Connects Plan will include realistic implementation timelines to construct new infrastructure, provide accurate costing for those investments and suggest tools to pay for them. It will also develop a plan to enhance the social infrastructure of active transportation in the Town, building a network of supportive stakeholders and providing them with tasks that can help to build a stronger culture of activity in the Town as it grows.

Building the Plan: Discussion Papers

As the Plan progresses, we will release Discussion Papers for public review and comment. These discussion papers will, eventually, become Chapters of the final Aurora Connects document. Each Discussion Paper will build upon the previous papers, providing a high degree of accountability and transparency in terms of how this Plan is being developed. Once all feedback on each Discussion Paper has been incorporated, the final version will be posted, with the expectation that the information presented in that paper will be the same information presented in the final ATMP.

  • Discussion Papers 2 and 3 Live!

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    Discussion Papers #2 and #3 are now available for viewing, demonstrating the progress in building an understanding of the Town of Aurora's Active Transportation potential. The Project Team has reviewed plans from other jurisdictions to develop a Best Practices document (Discussion Paper #2) and used those best practices to guide the development of Discussion Paper #3 - highlighting the Town's existing conditions and the potential for residents and visitors alike to walk, bike and wheel to get through Town.

    Check the Discussion Papers out in the Documents section on the right hand side of the page, and let us know your thoughts!

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  • Map Your Comments Today!

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    The Town of Aurora has previously developed a Trails Master Plan (2011), Master Transportation Plan (2020) and is also subject to changes as part of York Region's recently adopted Transportation Master Plan (2022) - so there are already a lot of suggestions for where new routes could be built in Town! We want to hear from you which ones of the existing routes work well, as well as where they could be improved. To provide that feedback, please use the Existing Conditions Mapping Tool, letting us know what is already working well in Aurora.

    We'd also like to know which of the Previously Proposed Routes should be a priority moving forward. Are there connections that might be redundant, or new destinations that should be prioritized for connections? Let us know!

  • Aurora Connects featured in NRU Magazine

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    Novae Res Urbis (NRU) is a weekly publication that focuses attention on issues of governance, planning and municipal affairs in Toronto and the Greater Golden Horseshoe. NRU tells stories that can shape how decisions are made, highlight best practices and provide insight into what is coming next in southern Ontario.

    In the August 17, 2022 edition of NRU, staff from both the Town and WSP Canada, the consultant leading the project, were featured in an article highlighting the potential of the Aurora Connects project to meet the Town's objectives with regards to sustainability, livability and community cohesion. Read the article here, and be sure to subscribe to this page for future updates!

    View the full NRU Article here!

    Posted with permission of the publisher of NRU Publishing Inc. Original article first appeared in Novae Res Urbis GTHA, Vol. 25, No. 32, Wednesday, August 17, 2022.

  • We're rolling!

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    We are rolling on the early stages of developing our ATMP. Key to this work is building upon Aurora's existing trails, connecting residents to key destinations and developing a plan to strengthen the culture of walking, cycling and wheeling within the Town.

    The Town has engaged WSP Canada Inc. (lead authors of Ontario Traffic Manual Book 18, Ontario's Cycling Design Guide), is currently collecting data and looking at existing trails, roads and opportunities. As we move into the summer and fall there will be many opportunities to share what your priorities are, and we’re eager to work with the community on this exciting project!

    As we launch this project, we have two tools to gather your insights - a Survey and Mapping Tools to comment on Existing Conditions and Previously Proposed Routes. Take a look at both, and tell us what you think about the existing conditions in Aurora, and help us identify areas of potential improvement!

Page last updated: 21 Mar 2024, 01:09 PM