Car service to SickKids hospital: a calmer way through appointment day

What does a car service to SickKids hospital involve?

At its simplest, a black car collects your family at home, fits the right child seat before arriving, and drops you at the hospital door with time to spare before registration. Many parents keep one car and one chauffeur for the whole day, booked as a private chauffeur, so the car is there whether the clinic finishes at noon or at four. The Hospital for Sick Children, known to everyone as SickKids, stands on University Avenue between Gerrard and Elm, across Elizabeth Street from Toronto General. Our dispatchers book these rides every week. What follows is the practical view: entrances, seats, siblings, timing and what to pack, written for the parent who has enough to think about already.

Which SickKids entrance should the chauffeur use?

The hospital's map and directions page names the main entrance at 170 Elizabeth Street. It is open 24 hours with a drop-off and pick-up driveway, an accessible ramp and doors. The secondary entrance at 555 University Avenue is open Monday to Friday, 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., and closed on weekends and holidays. For a car, the Elizabeth driveway is the default, because it is always open and built for unloading. If your clinic is closer to the University side and you arrive on a weekday morning, the chauffeur can use that entrance instead. SickKids also warns that construction on University Avenue may slow traffic into spring 2027, so we lean on Elizabeth Street.

How far is SickKids from home, and how long is the drive?

Planning figures only; our trip planner shows the distance for your own street, and the reservation engine prices the exact trip.

How do child seats work in a black car?

Seats are available at booking: infant, convertible and booster. Tell us each child's age, weight and height when you book, and the chauffeur installs the seats before reaching your door, so you are not wrestling with a base on the sidewalk. Parents are welcome to check the fit and adjust the harness themselves, and many do. If your child has a medical car seat or a special restraint, bring it and let us know; the chauffeur will leave room and help you install it. Ontario's guidance on choosing a child car seat explains the stages if you are unsure which one your child needs now. Our post on car seat taxis for family arrivals has more on seats for flights.

What does a full appointment day look like for a family?

A family from Oshawa with a five-year-old in the morning clinic and a younger sibling along might run like this:

1. 6:45 a.m. pickup, with two seats installed and a stroller in the trunk.
2. 7:50 a.m. drop-off at the Elizabeth Street driveway.
3. 8:15 a.m. registration, then an assessment and imaging.
4. 11:30 a.m. a short break; one parent takes the sibling for lunch while the chauffeur waits nearby.
5. 1:00 p.m. a second consult that runs over.
6. 3:20 p.m. text to the chauffeur; the car is at the driveway five minutes later.
7. 4:40 p.m. home, after the slower outbound drive.

Ten hours, one car, no parking receipts to chase and no one driving home exhausted.

Hourly chauffeur or two one-way rides for a SickKids visit?

Two one-way rides suit a short, predictable appointment where you know the finish time. Paediatric days are rarely like that. Children need breaks, tests stack up, and the specialist you came to see may be called away. An hourly booking starts at three hours for sedans, SUVs and vans, with extra time in 30-minute blocks, and the chauffeur stays with the family throughout. That means the stroller, the spare clothes and the comfort toy stay in the car rather than on your shoulder, and a sibling who needs a nap can be taken for a quiet loop while the patient is seen, as long as a parent or guardian travels with them. For the full comparison, see the hourly chauffeur service page.

What should parents pack in the car?

The car is a moving base camp, so use it:

• The health card, appointment letter and a list of current medications.
• A change of clothes for every child, plus wipes and a plastic bag for mishaps.
• Snacks and water, unless the patient must fast; ask the clinic.
• Chargers for phones and tablets, and headphones for long waits.
• A blanket and a small pillow for the drive home.
• Any prescribed equipment, labelled.

Leave in the car what you will not need on the clinic floor. Tell the chauffeur if anything must stay cold; a cooler bag on the floor is fine. Medications that need refrigeration should go with you into the hospital.

Where does the chauffeur wait while we are inside?

Off the driveway, within a few minutes of the entrance. SickKids' driveways are busy with Wheel-Trans, taxis and parents unloading equipment, so waiting cars move on. The hospital's parking page describes the underground garage, reached from Elm Street and open 24 hours with indoor access to the hospital; on long bookings the chauffeur may use it or nearby public parking. When your child is getting dressed or the nurse starts the discharge talk, send a text. The car comes back to the driveway, the chauffeur loads the stroller and you are moving within minutes.

Can a chauffeur take a child to SickKids without a parent?

No. A chauffeur is a professional driver, not a guardian, medical escort or childminder, and we do not transport unaccompanied minors to medical appointments. A parent, guardian or adult authorised by the family must ride with the child and handle registration and consent. What the chauffeur does do is everything around that: seats, bags, strollers, doors and patience. For relatives who come in from out of town to help, the car can collect a grandparent first and bring everyone together.

Families flying in from outside Ontario

SickKids treats children referred from across Canada and abroad. If you are landing at Pearson, a pre-booked car meets you at the terminal's pre-arranged pickup area on the arrivals curb with the child seat already fitted, and your flight is tracked so a delay costs nothing. An inside meet and greet with a name board is an optional add-on, available at booking, which many tired parents choose. If you need a hotel near hospital row or flights for a follow-up visit, our travel desk can arrange them, and our page on downtown Yonge and Eaton Centre hotels covers the closest areas. Families arriving together may also find our family arrivals page useful.

Which vehicle should a family book?

Count people, seats and gear. A business sedan takes a parent and one child in a seat with a small bag. Two parents, a patient in a convertible seat and a folded stroller already need an SUV, which seats up to six with room behind. A family with siblings, grandparents and a wheelchair to stow may need a luxury minivan or Sprinter. We have a wheelchair-accessible vehicle for anyone who must stay seated in a wheelchair or scooter, available when booked in advance; if your child can transfer to a car seat, the chauffeur folds and stows the chair.

How does the fare work for a hospital day?

We do not publish prices on this site. The reservation engine at /book/ shows the fixed, all-in fare before you confirm, covering the chauffeur, vehicle, fuel and gratuity, with HST shown separately. One-way trips change with the vehicle class, distance and drive time, extra stops and waiting beyond the included 15 minutes. Hourly bookings are charged by the hours you hold the car, from the three-hour minimum. Child seats are available at booking and appear in the engine before you pay. Our page on how our fares work explains each element.

What about evenings, weekends and emergencies?

The Elizabeth Street entrance never closes, so evening and weekend admissions use it by default. For anything urgent, call 911 or go straight to the emergency department; a pre-booked car is the wrong tool for an emergency. Where a car service helps is the follow-up: the discharge at 10 p.m. after a long day, the return for a weekend dressing change, the overnight stay where one parent needs to get home to the other children. Book those as soon as the time is known, and add a note if the patient will be tired or sore.

Winter and construction: building in a buffer

From November to April our cars run winter tires and chauffeurs add buffer time for snow. University Avenue construction, College Street streetcars and demonstrations near Queen's Park can each add ten minutes downtown. For a first clinic at 8 a.m., a family from the 905 should expect to leave before 7. The hospital's own pages list transit too: St. Patrick and Queen's Park stations on Line 1 and the 505 and 506 streetcars, served by the TTC, are the alternatives for a short, simple visit.

Booking a SickKids ride, step by step

1. Go to /book/ or press the floating Book now button.
2. Pick one-way for a short visit, hourly for a clinic day.
3. Enter your home address and "SickKids, 170 Elizabeth Street", with the clinic time in the notes.
4. Add each child's age and weight for seats, plus strollers, wheelchairs or equipment.
5. Confirm the fixed fare. Cancellation is free more than 72 hours before pickup; 72 hours or less costs 10 %, 48 hours or less 50 % and 24 hours or less 100 %.

Across the street, our sibling guide covers rides to Toronto General Hospital.

Book your SickKids family car