multi-use path
A shared-use path, mixed-use path or multi-use pathway is a path which is 'designed to accommodate the movement of pedestrians and cyclists'. Examples of shared-use paths include sidewalks designated as shared-use, bridleways and rail trails. A ...
that connects trails in the
Greater Toronto Area
The Greater Toronto Area, commonly referred to as the GTA, includes the City of Toronto and the regional municipalities of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York. In total, the region contains 25 urban, suburban, and rural municipalities. The Greater T ...
as part of the legacy of the
2015 Pan American Games
Fifteen or 15 may refer to:
*15 (number), the natural number following 14 and preceding 16
*one of the years 15 BC, AD 15, 1915, 2015
Music
*Fifteen (band), a punk rock band
Albums
* ''15'' (Buckcherry album), 2005
* ''15'' (Ani Lorak alb ...
and
2015 Parapan American Games
The 2015 Parapan American Games, officially the V Parapan American Games and commonly known as the Toronto 2015 ParaPan-Am Games, were a major international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities, celebrated in the tradition of the Pa ...
. The path is over in length, connecting Toronto neighbourhoods.
History
On July 3, 2013, the city of Toronto's Executive Committee recommended the path as a legacy project. On July 18, 2013, in a 37–1 vote, Toronto City Council committed to create a continuous trail from
Brampton
Brampton ( or ) is a city in the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. Brampton is a city in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and is a List of municipalities in Ontario#Lower-tier municipalities, lower-tier municipalit ...
to Rouge River. The original Pan Am Path strategy was to assist the Bikeway Trails Implementation Plan approved by Council on June 6th 2012 by accelerating creation of an east–west connection across the city.
The first section of Pan Am Path, near Cruickshank Park, was completed on June 21, 2014. Updates on the current East Don build by the TRCA can be foun here and upgrading of the Highland Creek Sectio here
The six of the seven founding members of the Friends of the Pan Am Path group came from
CivicAction
The Greater Toronto CivicAction Alliance (formerly the Toronto City Summit Alliance), commonly known as CivicAction, is a non-profit, non-partisan organization based in Toronto that attempts to boost civic engagement and address urban challenges i ...
's DiverseCity Fellows program: Brent Chamberlain, Caitlin McClung, James Gen Meers, Jonathan Asmis, Salim Rachid, and Tanzeel Merchant.Devon Ostrom a curator, artist and advocate with a history of creating projects in Toronto collaborated with the group on this initiative. As a co-founder, Devon sketched out the original concept, named the project and was Lead Curator from 2012 to 2017. Documentation of art works, maps and continued trail construction updates can be found at a archive site here
Route
The Pan Am Path follows existing trails in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
and includes plans for new trail connections to complete the continuous route from Brampton to Pickering. Starting from the west near the Claireville Reservoir, the trail follows the Humber Valley Trail southward along the Humber River to
Lake Ontario
Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...
. From there, the trail turns eastward and follows the
Taylor-Massey Creek
Taylor-Massey Creek is a tributary of the Don River in Toronto, Ontario. It flows through Scarborough and East York, where it enters the Don River. Taylor-Massey Creek has also been called ''Silver Creek'' and ''Scarboro Creek''.
The creek is na ...
. Another new trail will be constructed along the eastern branch of the Don River, where the Path will connect to the Gatineau Hydro Corridor eastward through
Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to:
People
* Scarborough (surname)
* Earl of Scarbrough
Places Australia
* Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth
* Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong
* Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...
. Another new trail will connect the Path to the Highland Creek Trail, following the Highland Creek back to Lake Ontario, where the
Waterfront Trail
Stretching over 3600 km (2236 miles) from Prince Township, west of Sault Ste. Marie, to the Quebec border, the Great Lakes Waterfront Trail is a signed route of interconnecting roads and off-road trails joining over 150 communities and First Na ...
completes the Path into
Pickering Pickering may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Pickering Nunataks, Alexander Island
Australia
* Pickering, South Australia, the original name (1872–1940) of the town of Wool Bay
* Pickering Brook, Western Australia, Australia
Canada
* Pic ...
.
Prior to the start of the Games in 2015, a temporary route was completed using
marked
In linguistics and social sciences, markedness is the state of standing out as nontypical or divergent as opposed to regular or common. In a marked–unmarked relation, one term of an opposition is the broader, dominant one. The dominant defau ...
on-street connections in places where the new trail connections had not yet been completed.
The Pan Am Path, particularly in the Rexdale area, currently features stations along the path for passersby to try rope climbing and chin-ups.