Well over a thousand Brantford-Brant residents attended the sixth annual Wheels on the Pavement event on Sunday, May 24, 2026.
Hosted in partnership between the City of Brantford, the Downtown Central, East Ward Echo Place, Holmedale, Eagle Place, Brantford Station and West Brant Neighbourhood Associations, as well as the Brantford Green Team, the free event was held in celebration of National Public Works Week.
The event featured an assortment of nearly 40 city vehicles, big rigs, emergency response vehicles and Jeeps from the Brantford Area Jeep and Off Road Club, giving children and parents alike a chance to explore them up close.
“This is an absolutely incredible day and there’s just so much community going on here. This event is giving people the opportunity to check out the vehicles they only ever see driving by once in a blue moon,” said Chad Martin, Chair of the Neighbourhood Alliance of Brantford. “It’s a chance to get up close and personal with these vehicles and to meet the people operating them. It’s an event that every kid, every parent, and every adult can come out and enjoy.”
As the event got underway, it didn’t take long for the youngsters and their parents to start lining up for a chance to explore the various vehicles, honk a few horns and pose for photos.
Many families took the opportunity to connect with the different community partner booths, to play games and pick up different goodies to take home. Some stood in line to get a balloon animal from Marco the Clown, have their face painted or get temporary tattoos, while others stopped to watch the Just Dance Line Dancing Community entertain the crowd.
“We have a ton of things happening here,” said Martin. “We have a bouncy castle and all sorts of activities and games for kids, we’ve got Doug “the Great” (Hunt) on his stilts, a photo booth, food trucks and line dancers, and for the first time ever, we’re allowing people to paint a snowplow, which is just awesome.”
Organizers were also collecting non-perishables and school-safe snacks on behalf of Gifts of the Heart, a local not-for-profit organization dedicated to addressing the issues of food and clothing insecurity that faces young school-age children.
When asked what his favourite thing about the event was, Martin said it was seeing the community be together and having fun
“This is exactly what all the neighbourhood associations and the people from parks and recreation want, for people to come together and just enjoy themselves,” he said. “Thanks to Miura Boilers Canada, who are a huge sponsor for us, it’s a free event which is great because it makes this event accessible; there are no barriers whatsoever to come here, to do something enjoyable with the family and to check out some really awesome vehicles.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
