Speed limits on City streets are set according to Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act. The default speed limit on roads within the City of Mississauga is 50 kilometres per hour, unless otherwise posted.
The City is making neighbourhood roads safer for all travellers by reducing speed limits in specific areas.
- The identification of neighbourhood area speed limit zones
- The lowering of speed limits in school zones
- The designation of community safety zones
Speeding and safety
Speed is a contributing factor in approximately one third of fatal collisions according to the Ontario Traffic Council.
Lower speeds are proven to reduce the severity of injuries.
Statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO) show that survival rates dramatically increase with lower speeds.
There is a 9 in 10 rate of survival if hit by a vehicle travelling at 30 km/h or lower. At 50 km/hr, the survival rate drops to 1.5 in 10.
The slower a vehicle is travelling the less time it takes to stop and avoid a collision.
Neighbourhood area speed limits
Instead of reducing speed limits street by street, neighbourhood area speed limits establish a reduced speed limit for an entire neighbourhood.
In fall 2019, the City began lowering speeds in 11 different neighbourhoods.
In 2021, the City will expand this to reduce speed limits in all of Mississauga’s 150 neighbourhoods. This process may take some time to complete as the City works to make these changes neighbourhood by neighbourhood.
New signs will be installed at the entrances and exits to all neighbourhoods which will indicate when the neighbourhood area speed limits are in effect.
Access the interactive map that shows the “completed” and “coming soon” neighbourhoods.
School zones
School zones set the speed limit in front of elementary schools. Currently the speed limit is 40 kilometres per hour.
As part of the Neighbourhood Area Speed Limit Project, these speed limits will be lowered to 30 kilometres per hour.
For schools located on most major roads, the speed limit will remain 40 kilometres per hour.
Community safety zones
Community safety zones are implemented where public safety is of special concern or where public safety concerns are evident.
Community safety zones should only be established when traffic enforcement is possible, and increased enforcement is both expected and reasonable.
Many set fines, such as speeding and traffic signal related offences, are doubled within community safety zones.
As part of the Neighbourhood Area Speed Limit Project, community safety zones will be established in all school zones on City roadways. A technical criteria for the application of community safety zones is being developed to guide their future application so that they remain credible and effective.