Traffic Garden Plan Set Contest 2026
Three Schools.
Three Traffic Gardens.
Traffic Garden Designs is awarding three U.S. elementary schools or preschools a ready-to-install traffic garden plan set. If your school has a promising paved space, this could be the start of a traffic garden for your students.
Applications close: Thursday October 1, 2026
What You Can Win
Three schools will each receive one Traffic Garden Designs plan set, licensed for a single installation at the winning school/site.
Each winner will work with Traffic Garden Designs to select the existing layout that best fits its site from our collection of 12 ready-to-install designs. Limited adjustments can be made for small differences in site dimensions and conditions.
The prize is the professional traffic garden plan set with full layout, materials quantities and detailed installation instructions – everything you need to have a traffic garden installed. It does not include pavement repairs, costs of materials, installation, striping/painting, construction, or other implementation costs. We do not provide these services but can help you through that process connecting you to contractors and suppliers to get quotes and information.
Suitable for a wide range of users, from young children on balance bikes to older students building road skills
Cities and school districts are building networks of traffic gardens, expanding from single installations to community- and district-wide programs.
Communities are looking for faster, more efficient ways to get traffic gardens on the ground and meet growing demand.
Who Can Enter
The contest is open to representatives of U.S. elementary schools and preschools with a possible location for a traffic garden. This is not a writing competition. We are interested in your school, your proposed site, and what a traffic garden could mean for your students.
Public, charter, private, and other elementary and pre-schools.
Open to U.S. applicants only. Schools in all 50 states are welcome to apply.
You do not need to have installation funding secured before you apply.
Overview of Products and Services
Traffic Garden Designs offers ready-to-use plan sets, with optional customization and practical guidance to move your project from concept to installation with clarity. We also help connect you with local contractors and early pricing to support decisions from the start.
Traffic garden plan sets with optional AutoCAD files for project integration
Optional site-fit customization to adapt layouts to your space and constraints
Practical guidance and resources to support pricing, siting, and installation
Our Core Values
Our work is grounded in a clear set of values that guide every design, decision, and partnership. These principles reflect our commitment to quality, practicality, and lasting impact, shaping how we transform everyday spaces into meaningful places for learning, movement, and community connection.
Real-World Practicality
We design with implementation in mind, helping our clients plan, price, and move forward with confidence. Through clear drawings, installable details, and a strong understanding of materials, and site constraints, we make it easier to turn ideas into built projects.
Design and Durability Excellence
We believe thoughtful, well-crafted quality design matters. Our layouts are intuitive, engaging, and built to last. We want them to reflect how real streets operate in a way that is clear, practical, and enjoyable for program organizers and participants alike. With “By Finn Quinn” in our name, we stand behind that quality personally.
Children First: Play to Learn
We design every traffic garden with children at the center, creating spaces where they can play, practice, and take risks in a safe, supportive environment. Through movement and fun, children build real-world skills, confidence, and independence while creating joyful memories.
Lasting Impact
We believe underused asphalt is an opportunity that is hidden in plain sight all over. By transforming it into durable, adaptable community assets, we put existing infrastructure back to work to strengthen our communities and create places that turn these spaces into active places for kids.
Testimonials
"The residents/kids at Woodmont Park L-O-V-E the traffic garden. We’ve received countless compliments from them."
Jim Teller
Vice President, Marketing, Kay Apartments
"I love working with Fionnuala Quinn. She has a wealth of knowledge on the subject, she always goes above and beyond on her services and thinks of the smallest of details that would make a huge difference on the final product."
Andrea Garland
TDM Director, RVARC
"I was involved with the installation of the first ever traffic garden in Huntington Park Columbia, Maryland. This project was done by a contractor that had never done a traffic garden before. They were able to do the project in five days because the drawings that were created by Fionnuala Quinn were so detailed. It was easy for this contractor that typically does tennis courts and pickleball courts to complete this project in five days."
Tom Decker Jr.
President, SealMaster
"Amazing experience working together yielded an awesome outcome."
Stephen Rowley
Education Director, Cascade Bicycle Club
"Fionnuala was wonderful to work with. Her clear expertise and patient coordination with the local communities made the project a pleasure. "
Hannah Day-Kapell
Principal - Director of Planning, Alta Planning + Design
"We loved the the direct contact and experience with Fionnuala and her team on our project. The quality of the final design, as well as the collaboration and expertise she was able to provide through the internal and public design development process were unmatched."
George Berger
Senior Greenways & Parks Planner, City of Concord, NC
"Fionnuala answered all my questions and even ones I didn’t know I had, and provided an overview of the process for getting from “here” to “there.” Although the partnership might have been able to build the traffic garden without her counsel, it would have been a prolonged and clumsy process—and it would not have turned out as spectacularly as it did."
Steve Garon
Safe Routes to School and Healthy Community Action Team Program Coordinator for Waynesboro Walk and Wheel.
"We are so pleased with how this project came together! Discover Traffic Gardens was very responsive, asked good questions, delivered and helped us understand different trade-offs as we finalized the design."
Nate Lash
Public Realm Manager,
City of Boston Streets Cabinet
"Working with Fionnuala Quinn on our traffic garden project was an incredibly positive experience. She brought both technical expertise and a collaborative approach that made the entire process smooth and engaging from start to finish. Fionnuala developed a thoughtful and intentional design for the garden, providing detailed maps and guidance that allowed the painters to accurately install each element of the space."
Tiffany White
Health Programs Manager, Cincinnati Health Department
Our Projects in Action
A curated selection of traffic gardens we’ve designed and helped bring to life across a wide range of sites, reflecting the diversity of communities, contexts, and opportunities these projects serve.
We make these resources freely available to support you in growing traffic gardens and in spreading the concept of traffic gardens nationally!
Please enjoy and use these materials, but keep in mind that they are copyright protected and most were created by TGD and are our Intellectual Property. The written content and layout designs, along with other materials we’ve prepared for guides and jurisdictions, are provided as references and for personal use to help you develop your own traffic garden projects.
If you would like to use or license TGD content or layout designs for new materials or events, please contact us directly to discuss. As a small business, we truly value and appreciate your support of our ability to do this work!