School Streets are designed to promote active travel by creating car-free zones outside schools during drop-off and pick-up times. This offers numerous benefits, including increased active travel, reduced air pollution, improved road safety, enhanced child mobility, and strengthened social connections. Green Communities Canada is collaborating with 8 80 Cities, the Centre d’écologie urbaine, and the Society for Children and Youth of BC to launch school streets initiatives in cities across Canada. Ever Active Schools has been selected to be the local partner organization to initiate the program in Edmonton, Alberta.

Ever Active Schools specializes in supporting Active School Travel by working closely with school communities and overcoming the challenges that prevent students from using active transportation. Our deep experience in building partnerships and our commitment to creating healthy school environments uniquely position us to lead in this area. We utilize a strategy that blends Comprehensive School Health with the School Travel Planning model developed by Green Communities Canada and Ontario Active School Travel. This approach enables us to create effective solutions that promote active travel in schools, making Ever Active Schools a strong candidate to drive the success of the School Streets project.

The School Streets program will take place from 2024-2027 with up to 30 School Street implementations planned across six provinces including British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. As part of this initiative, Ever Active Schools aims to pilot two School Street projects in Edmonton, with each intervention taking place over the course of one month.