Active transportation priorities for Oak Bay

On Monday, November 19th (2012) the Active Transportation Advisory Committee (http://oakbay.ca/municipal-hall/committees/active-transportation-advisory-committee) recommended four priority active transportation projects to Oak Bay Municipal Council.  The priority projects are consistent with recommendations from previous seminal reports -  the CRD Pedestrian and Cycling Master Plan (2011), the Active Transportation Strategy Report completed for Oak Bay in 2011, and the Accessibility Committee Report on Oak Bay Ave. They are entirely consistent with the Complete Streets Policy adopted by Oak Bay Council earlier this year.

All four projects meet the following criteria established by the Committee: 

• Can take advantage of external funding
• Maximum impact
• Support regional priorities
• Urgent and feasible

The four projects - two that we considered strategic in the sense that they are large and require additional expertise and funding and two that we saw as operational in that they can be done with the existing resources and expertise are listed here:

Operational
Haultain East-West Connector
UVIC/Lansdowne North South Pathway

Strategic
Oak Bay Ave
Oak Bay High School Redevlopment

The full presentation that we made to Council can be found at this link: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B6mb3qm1mYxkbEhLUVhLRFNjWXM/edit

Members of the Active Transportation Advisory Committee were gratified by the overwhelming support Council demonstrated in their unanimous vote in support of the recommended priorities. Moreover, they followed up with five key motions directing staff to report back on feasibility/cost for all four projects. Oak Bay is off to a promising start! 

Oak Bay adopts Complete Streets

Oak Bay Committee of the Whole was unanimous on June 18th in approving the Complete Streets policy put forward by the Active Transportation Advisory Committee. The policy now goes to Council for final approval. 


Complete streets are streets, trails, and multiple use paths that work for everybody from 8 to 98. 


Oak Bay now joins a number of other municipalities in the region—Saanich, Esquimalt, Victoria, Colwood, View Royal, and Langford, as well as hundreds of cities across Canada and the USA—in taking a progressive approach to active transportation planning. 


Here is the link to the presentation that the ATAC made to Council.

Is being active also economic?

The other day, I walked to the bank. On my return home, I decided to try a different route. I ended up going past a little neighbourhood store I hadn't previously seen. I had a lovely conversation with the owner, bought some food I hadn't been planning to buy, took his card, and sent a note around to friends in the area telling them about my find. 

So was my experience part of the economic benefits of active transportation? Have a look at the website for the Population Health Improvement Research Network based at the University of Ottawa. CHNET hosts free weekly fireside chats—aka "webinars". 

Coming up on July 6th is a discussion on the economic benefits of active transportation, described as an important part of the toolbox used to make communities healthy and liveable. 

By the way, part of encouraging active transportation is having a "complete streets" policy that says, in effect, that decisions regarding streets must be inclusive. That means inverting the pyramid and thinking about street usage first from the perspective of pedestrians, cyclists, and public transportation.


Okay, here in Oak Bay, we may not be the first to think about this stuff. Turns out that most of the other municipalities in the region—such as Langford, View Royal, Esquimalt, and Saanich—already have a complete streets policy. But we may be able to catch up, if citizens make their voices heard. 

Complete Streets Policy Proposal: Public Feedback

Oak Bay Municipal Council recently considered a request from the Active Transportation Advisory Committee (ATAC) to consider adopting a Complete Streets Policy.  This proposal will be considered further at the June 18, 2012, Committee of the Whole meeting.

Please click on, download (as a PDF) and read the ATAC report to Council here, and submit input via email at obcouncil@oakbay.ca, or by dropping off a letter at the Municipal Hall, 2167 Oak Bay Avenue. Any correspondence received will be placed on the public agenda for the Committee of the Whole meeting when this subject is next considered.