Road Closures This Weekend: What Markham Drivers Need to Know

Drivers in Markham should be aware of two separate road closures affecting the city's road network this weekend. A combination of planned paving operations and a community road race event will restrict access on several key roads on Friday evening through Sunday morning. Here is what you need to know to plan your travel.

Kennedy Road: Paving Operations

Kennedy Road is closed to through traffic for paving operations from 8 p.m. on Thursday, May 22 to 8 p.m. on Friday, May 23, 2026. The closure affects the section of Kennedy Road from YMCA Boulevard/Helen Avenue to Unionville Gate/South Unionville Avenue in Markham.

Kennedy Road is a significant north-south arterial in central Markham, providing connections between the Unionville area and the broader road network. The overnight-into-daytime closure is designed to allow paving crews to complete their work on the road surface during a period of lower traffic demand, but drivers should expect the closure to affect movements during the morning and midday period on May 23 as well.

Drivers who normally use Kennedy Road in this stretch should identify alternative routes before the closure begins. Parallel north-south alternatives in this part of Markham include Warden Avenue to the west and McCowan Road or Markham Road to the east, depending on your specific origin and destination. Plan your route in advance to avoid unexpected delays.

Warden Avenue and 16th Avenue: Run for Women

On Sunday, May 24, 2026, from 5:00 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., road closures will be in effect on two major roads to accommodate the Shoppers Drug Mart Run for Women:

• Warden Avenue between Highway 7 and 16th Avenue
• 16th Avenue between Warden Avenue and Kennedy Road

The Shoppers Drug Mart Run for Women is an established community race event that uses Markham's road network as its course. The closures will be in effect from the early morning through the late morning, covering the period when race participants are using the course. By 11:30 a.m., both roads are expected to be reopened to normal traffic.

The affected area includes two of Markham's major arterials, and the timing — early Sunday morning — means many drivers heading out for early errands, religious services, or other weekend activities may encounter the closures. Anyone planning Sunday morning travel in the Warden/16th Avenue area should account for these closures and plan alternate routes.

Alternate Route Suggestions

For drivers affected by the Sunday closures:

• North-south travel in the Warden Avenue corridor can be redirected to Kennedy Road (which will have reopened by May 24) or to McCowan Road further east
• East-west travel along the 16th Avenue corridor can be partially redirected to Highway 7 to the south or Major Mackenzie Drive to the north, depending on your destination
• Residents in the immediate area of the race course should be aware that local access may be managed by event staff and that temporary delays are possible even for residents accessing their own streets

Supporting the Run for Women

The Shoppers Drug Mart Run for Women is a charitable run that raises funds for women's health causes. It is one of several community road race events that take place across Markham and York Region throughout the spring and summer season, bringing hundreds of participants onto local roads in a safe, organized environment. If you encounter runners on or near the course on Sunday morning, please observe all event signage and the instructions of course marshals.

For the latest information on road closures and construction projects affecting York Region roads, visit york.ca and the City of Markham's road closures page.

Looking Ahead: More Construction This Summer

The May 22–24 closures are part of a broader pattern of construction and event-related road restrictions that Markham drivers can expect through the spring and summer of 2026. York Region's active construction schedule, combined with a full calendar of community events that periodically use the road network as venue space, means that staying informed about planned closures is an increasingly valuable habit for residents who commute or run errands regularly across the city.

The City of Markham and York Region both maintain online road closure calendars and issue press releases in advance of planned closures. Subscribing to email alerts from York Region's transportation department is one of the most efficient ways to receive advance notice of closures that may affect your regular routes. With the Honda Indy Markham street circuit construction also progressing in the downtown area and the broader York Region construction season in full swing, Markham drivers are well served by building a few extra minutes of buffer into weekend travel plans for the foreseeable future.

For more local news and community updates across Markham and Richmond Hill, visit MarkhamBusiness.com.