Toronto · intersection

Lawson & Centennial

Lawson Rd & Centennial Rd · Toronto, Ontario · Centennial Scarborough · Ward 25, Scarborough-Rouge Park

Lawson & Centennial is a lightly travelled intersection. It sits in Centennial Scarborough. It has a school within 250 m at the corner. Nearby: 7 TTC routes within a kilometre.

Traffic volume
4,004
vehicles · 8-hour count, Jun 1, 2023
542 pedestrians · 17 cyclists
Collisions
13
police-reported, any severity · 2016–2025
3 with an injury · 10 property damage · #3947 of 5,508
KSI collisions
2
killed or seriously injured · 2016–2025
0 fatal · 1 pedestrian · 0 cyclist · #298 of 1,505
Red-light camera
None
not on the City's camera list
Transit
2
TTC stops within 100 m
4 bus routes within 1 km
Cycling
No bikeway
nothing on the City cycling network here
no Bike Share dock within 150 m

The latest City count averages about 500 vehicles an hour over its 8-hour span, 43% of the median counted intersection. There is roughly one pedestrian for every 7 vehicles, a higher share of people on foot than the typical counted intersection (one per 13). That comes with about 1.3 reported collisions a year, 2016–2025 — well below the median of 31 for the decade. About one in seven of those collisions involved a death or serious injury.

Map

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Lawson & Centennial

Getting here

Transit within 1 km, cycling at the corner, and what's within a 1.5 km walk

Transit & cycling

TTC bus
389520086 nearest 32 m
Express
986
Blue Night
395386
Nearest stops
6 surface stops within 300 m — Lawson Rd at Centennial Rd West Side; Lawson Rd at Centennial Rd
Cycling
no bikeway on the City cycling network touches this intersection
Bike Share
no station within 1 km

Straight-line distances to the nearest stop or station entrance in each agency's current schedule feed, including temporary diversions.

Within walking distance 1.5 km

Schools (10)
  • Centennial Road Jr Public SchoolEnglish Public · 83 m
  • St Brendan Catholic Elementary SchoolEnglish Separate · 562 m
  • Charlottetown Jr Public SchoolEnglish Public · 914 m
  • Joseph Howe Sr Public SchoolEnglish Public · 1.1 km
  • Sir Oliver Mowat Collegiate InstituteEnglish Public · 1.1 km
  • Ecole Elementaire Catholique Saint MichelFrench Separate · 1.2 km
  • and 4 more
Community centres
Parks (14)
  • Centennial Park - Scarborough275 m
  • Laura Ellis Park494 m
  • Adams Park658 m
  • Fanfare Park1 km
  • Tanis Cres Woodlot1 km
  • Charlottetown Park1.1 km
  • and 8 more
Library
  • Toronto Public Library Port Union branch1.2 km

Around the corner

Food premises, public washrooms, child care and emergency services — distances are straight-line from the node

Restaurants & food

There is 1 restaurant, café or takeout within 300 m of the corner, and 6 eating places within a kilometre — well below the median of 73 within a kilometre. The nearest is Malt N Salt, 115 m away, which passed its last DineSafe inspection in November 2025.

Restaurants & cafés1 within 300 m · 6 within 1 km
Grocery & convenience0 within 300 m · 2 within 1 km
Nearest food premisesDistanceLatest DineSafe inspection
Malt N Salt · 285 Lawson Rd115 mPassed, Nov 2025
Pizzaiolo · 305 Port Union Rd Unit-1878 mPassed, Jan 2026
Shawarma Queenz · 305 Port Union Rd Unit-2878 mPassed, Jan 2026 · 2 infractions
Town Wings · 285 Port Union Rd, Unit-8905 mPassed, Mar 2025
Rouge Kitchen · 297 Port Union Rd Unit-13906 mPassed, Aug 2026
Port Union Bakery · 287 Port Union Rdgrocery907 mPassed, Jun 2026
Thai Square · 277 Port Union Rd907 mPassed, Jul 2026
Metro · 261 Port Union Rdgrocery915 mPassed, Jan 2026

Every establishment Toronto Public Health inspects under DineSafe, screened by name to leave out kitchens inside schools, care homes and offices. A conditional pass means infractions had to be fixed by a follow-up visit, not that the premises is closed.

Washrooms & water

The nearest public washroom is Adams Park West Fieldhouse Washroom, 609 m away, open 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.

  • Adams Park West Fieldhouse Washroom · 2 Rozell Rd
    9 a.m. to 10 p.m.
    609 m

Park washrooms, washrooms in City buildings and automated street toilets, with hours and status as the City publishes them (park washrooms are seasonal). Malls, shops and TTC stations are not included.

Child care

Four licensed child care centres within a kilometre offer 175 spaces; two accept City fee subsidy. The nearest is Creative Minds Montessori Academy (130 m, 79 spaces, infant, toddler, preschool, school age).

Within 1 km4 centres · 175 spaces
Fee subsidy2 of 4
  • Creative Minds Montessori Academy · 285 Lawson Rd
    79 spaces · infant, toddler, preschool, school age · $10-a-day
    130 m
  • St. Brendan Kindergarten Before & After School Program · 186 Centennial Rd
    39 spaces · kindergarten · fee subsidy · $10-a-day
    562 m
  • Absorbent Minds Montessori East · 6534 Kingston Rd
    31 spaces · toddler, preschool
    769 m
  • Charlottetown Kindergarten Extended Care Program · 85 Charlottetown Blvd
    26 spaces · kindergarten · fee subsidy · $10-a-day
    914 m

Licensed centres only; spaces are licensed capacity, not vacancies.

Emergency services

The nearest fire hall is Fire Station 215 (1.1 km), the nearest police station 43 Division (2.6 km) and the nearest ambulance station 2.6 km away.

FireFire Station 215 · 1.1 km5318 Lawrence Ave E
Police43 Division · 2.6 km4331 Lawrence Avenue East
AmbulanceTPS 43 Division/EMS Stn 26 · 2.6 km4331 Lawrence Ave E

Nearest station by straight line — not a response time, and not necessarily the station that would answer a call.

Parking

Every mapped lot within 2 km, Green P with peak occupancy, City EV charging and bike parking

All parking lots126 lots · ≈12,570 spaces · 37.7 ha
Within 500 m4 lots · ≈450 spaces
Green P (public)none within 2 km
EV charging (City)none within 2 km
Bike parkingnone recorded nearby

Nearest lots: 69 m away, ≈47 spaces; 84 m away, ≈29 spaces; 464 m away, ≈304 spaces; 495 m away, ≈72 spaces; 626 m away, ≈95 spaces; 635 m away, ≈46 spaces.

Lot count and area from the City's topographic mapping of parking-lot footprints (every visible surface lot, public or private); spaces are estimated at one per 30 m² of lot. Lots not run by Green P are private, commercial or institutional and may be for customers or residents only. Green P spaces and average daily peak occupancy from the Toronto Parking Authority's quarterly dataset (* = capacity from the 2019 car-park list; rates are not shown because that list is stale — check Green P). EV chargers are City-operated only; on-street and underground parking are not included.

Traffic volume

The City's latest turning-movement count — 8-hour, Jun 1, 2023

The east leg carries the load — 1,489 westbound vehicles, or 37% of everything entering — while the north leg brought 163. The morning and afternoon peaks are nearly equal: 639 vehicles in the hour from 8:15 a.m. and 645 from 5:00 p.m. Heavy vehicles made up 4.2% of traffic (typical: 3.2%). The citywide median for a 14-hour count is 16,183 vehicles. The count is 3 years old; the City recounts intersections on an ad-hoc schedule, so volumes may have shifted since. It was an 8-hour count, which is not directly comparable with the 14-hour counts the City has used since September 2023.

From the north163southbound · 0 bikes · 1.2% heavy
From the west1,477eastbound · 9 bikes · 4.9% heavy
Total vehicles4,004542 pedestrians · 17 cyclists · 4.2% heavy
From the east1,489westbound · 5 bikes · 5.4% heavy
From the south875northbound · 3 bikes · 1.4% heavy
AM peak hour639 vehicles from 8:15 a.m.
PM peak hour645 vehicles from 5:00 p.m.
Count8-hour · Jun 1, 2023

Approach figures are vehicles entering the intersection from that leg over the whole count. A count is one day's traffic, not an annual average; the City recounts on an ad-hoc schedule.

How fast traffic moves here

Midblock speed counts on the intersection's streets, the nearest school-zone speed sign, and traffic calming

The City's counter on Lawson Rd between Brumwell St and Adams Park Trl (364 m away) recorded an average of 61 km/h in its 3-day count in April 2018; 85% of drivers were at or under 68 km/h. That segment carries about 6,400 vehicles a day. Centennial Rd between Cameron Watson Cres and Cherrydale Crt measured slower: 45 km/h on average and an 85th percentile of 52 km/h (Apr 2022). The reading is 8 years old; the City counts on request rather than on a schedule. At the school-zone speed sign on Lawson Rd (56 m away, 40 km/h limit), 10% of the 68,280 vehicles logged in July 2026 were doing 50 km/h or more — a share the City would treat as a speeding problem.

Street segmentCountedVehicles / dayAverage85th percentile95th
Centennial Rd · Cameron Watson Cres – Cherrydale Crt · 349 mApr 2022 · 3 days2,30045 km/h52 km/h57 km/h
Lawson Rd · Brumwell St – Adams Park Trl · 364 mApr 2018 · 3 days6,36061 km/h68 km/h74 km/h

School-zone speed sign 56 m

Posted limit40 km/h
Median · 85th pct42 · 48 km/h
Over the limit31%
50 km/h or more10%

Lawson Rd (eastbound), S/S Lawson Rd, 50m West of Centennial Rd · 68,280 vehicles logged in July 2026 · runs weekdays, 7 am - 9 pm.

Midblock counts are automatic counters laid across the road for one to seven days; the 85th-percentile speed is the figure engineers use — 85% of drivers were at or below it. Counts are ad hoc, so some are years old. A midblock reading is not the speed through the intersection itself, and posted limits are not in the count data.

All police-reported collisions

Every collision reported to Toronto Police within 65 m, any severity, 2016–2025

2022 was the peak year (3 collisions), and 2025 closed with 1. 23% of collisions here involved an injury. People walking or cycling were involved in 8% of collisions here. The most recent report on file is from Jun 14, 2025.

By year

16171819202122232425
2016–2025Collisions
All reported collisions13#3947 of 5,508
With an injury3#3224 of 4,660
Property damage only10
Fail to remain0
Involving a pedestrian1#2310 of 3,193
Involving a cyclist0
Involving a motorcyclist0
With a fatality0
All since 201418latest Jun 14, 2025

Source: Toronto Police Service, Traffic Collisions Open Data — every collision reported to police since 2014, within 65 m of this node. Records through Jun 30, 2026.

Killed or seriously injured

Collisions in which someone died or was seriously injured, within 65 m, 2016–2025 — the basis of the danger rankings

Neither of the two serious-injury collisions in 2016–2025 was fatal. 1 pedestrian was among those hurt; one collision involved vehicle occupants only. One of the two happened in darkness. The most recent was on Mar 12, 2019.

By year

16171819202122232425
2016–2025Collisions
All KSI collisions2#298 of 1,505
Fatal0
Involving a pedestrian1#423 of 879
Involving a cyclist0
Involving a motorcyclist0
In darkness1
All KSI since 20062latest Mar 12, 2019

KSI = killed or seriously injured. A collision is counted if its recorded location is within 65 m of this intersection's centreline node, whether the police coded it as intersection-related or mid-block. Records can lag a year or more, so the current year is excluded from rankings.

Thefts reported at this corner

Thefts from vehicles and bicycle thefts that Toronto Police have offset to this intersection, 2016–2025

Toronto Police place two thefts from vehicles and no bicycle thefts at this intersection in 2016–2025.

By year

16171819202122232425
2016–2025Reported2023–2025Since Jan 2026Most often from
Theft from a vehicle200house driveway/garage (2)
Bicycle theft000

Source: Toronto Police Service, Theft From Motor Vehicle and Bicycle Thefts open data, records through Jul 18, 2021. Police offset every occurrence to the nearest intersection before publishing, so these are thefts on the streets and premises around this node, not necessarily at the corner itself. Other offences are published by neighbourhood only — see Centennial Scarborough.

Nearby intersections

Questions

Is Lawson & Centennial a dangerous intersection?

It is not among the worst. 2 serious-injury collisions were recorded in 2016–2025 (#298 of 1,505), out of 13 reported collisions of any severity. High counts usually track high traffic volume rather than a design flaw; volume is shown alongside so the numbers can be read in context.

How busy is Lawson & Centennial?

A lightly travelled intersection. Its latest count is from Jun 1, 2023, 43% of the median for a counted intersection.

How fast do cars go at Lawson & Centennial?

The City's most recent speed count near the corner, on Lawson Rd between Brumwell St and Adams Park Trl (April 2018), found an average of 61 km/h and an 85th-percentile speed of 68 km/h — meaning 85% of drivers were at or below that speed. At the school-zone speed sign 56 m away (40 km/h), 10% of vehicles were doing 50 km/h or more in July 2026.

Where can I park near Lawson & Centennial?

There is no Green P car park within 2 km. The City's mapping shows 126 parking lots of any kind within 2 km — roughly 12,570 spaces — 4 of them within 500 m; most are private or customer-only lots.

How do I get to Lawson & Centennial by transit?

Bus routes 38, 95, 200, 86, 986 within 1 km (nearest stop: Lawson Rd at Centennial Rd West Side, 32 m).

What restaurants are near Lawson & Centennial?

1 restaurant, café or takeout is within 300 m, and 6 within a kilometre, according to Toronto Public Health's DineSafe inspection list. The closest are Malt N Salt (115 m), Pizzaiolo (878 m), Shawarma Queenz (878 m), Town Wings (905 m) and Rouge Kitchen (906 m). Each one's latest inspection result is shown on this page; DineSafe does not record cuisine or opening hours.

Is there a public washroom near Lawson & Centennial?

The nearest is Adams Park West Fieldhouse Washroom, 2 Rozell Rd, 609 m away (open 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.). These are the City's own washrooms — in parks, civic buildings and automated street toilets — not those in malls, coffee shops or TTC stations.

Is there child care near Lawson & Centennial?

Four licensed child care centres within 1 km, with 175 spaces in total; 2 accept City fee subsidy and some are in the $10-a-day (CWELCC) program. The nearest are Creative Minds Montessori Academy (130 m, 79 spaces), St. Brendan Kindergarten Before & After School Program (562 m, 39 spaces) and Absorbent Minds Montessori East (769 m, 31 spaces). Spaces are licensed capacity, not vacancies.

How many thefts are reported at Lawson & Centennial?

Toronto Police place two thefts from vehicles and no bicycle thefts at this intersection in 2016–2025. Police offset every reported occurrence to the nearest intersection before publishing it, so the count covers the streets, driveways and parking around this corner rather than the corner itself. Break-ins, robberies and other offences are published by neighbourhood only — see the Centennial Scarborough page.

What neighbourhood is Lawson & Centennial in?

Lawson & Centennial is in Centennial Scarborough (City of Toronto neighbourhood 133). It is in Ward 25, Scarborough-Rouge Park, represented by Councillor Neethan Shan.

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from one of these datasets — how they are joined