Key Takeaways

• Public space can be framed as a public-health tool and investment to promote well-being.
• Pilots including lighting, murals, intersection experiments should be paired with long-term standards for wayfinding, consistent streetscape, lighting.

Summary

1. The Bentway:
   • Transformed the empty space (1 km stretch in phase 1) under Toronto’s Gardener Expressway into a tested model for converting elevated highway underdecks into civic, cultural and ecological infrastructure while the highway remains operational.
   • The pilot included heavy programming and temporary activations, including, winter skating, recreational activities, large-scale murals, festivals, and commissioned artworks.
   • Environmental measures such as bioswales, porous surfaces, and expanded canopy were integrated to manage deck runoff and improve thermal comfort.
2. Programming Approach:
   • Engage neighbours, communities, and the general public as active, primary participants in city-building.
   • Co-create with communities and champion diverse voices, perspectives, and expertise.
   • Include artists and creatives in dialogue with, and about the city.
3. Outcomes:
   • Artist-led installations produced evidence and public narratives that informed guidelines and policy recommendations.
   • Thousands of people use the skating trail in winter and drive social connections.
   • The city council approved a 7km public realm plan for the full corridor.
   • The pilot shaped municipal policy and offers a replicable playbook for retrofitting large linear infrastructure for multifunctionality.

How can Cities apply these learnings?

1. Treat public space beneath linear infrastructure as strategic civic land and public health tool.
2. Engage artists and Indigenous designers early to surface cultural narratives and site-specific data.
3. Public-realm pilots can be paired with rigorous evaluation to measure social outcomes such as impact of loneliness, neighbour interactions, frequency of use, etc.
4. Create a multi-source revenue model with a city operating budget, philanthropy, earned income, and sponsorship and assign clear maintenance responsibilities for long-term viability and success.

Ideas for further reading

1. RX for social connection — report by The Bentway with partners Gehl (New York) and researchers from the Dalla Lana School of Public Health (U of T). https://thebentway.ca/publication/rx-for-social-connection/ 
2. Cool by Design: The Power of Shade in Public Space by the Bentway. https://thebentway.ca/publication/cool-by-design/ 
3. Under Gardiner – Public Realm Plan by The Bentway and the City of Toronto. https://undergardinerprp.ca/ 
4. The Highline case study (NY). https://www.thehighline.org/about/

Ideas for further research

1. Map who benefits from corridor transformations and design measures to prevent displacement or access inequities.