Less Car

Tag: cars

  • Beyond the Pump: How a Less Car-Dependent Life Could Boost Your Happiness (and Your Wallet) in Orleans

    Beyond the Pump: How a Less Car-Dependent Life Could Boost Your Happiness (and Your Wallet) in Orleans

    sports car toy beside the pile of coins
    Photo by Alex P on Pexels.com

    In Orleans, the car is king. It’s the default mode of transport for groceries, school runs, and even that quick trip for coffee. We often focus on the big-picture issues of car dependency – traffic, land use, emissions. But what if shifting away from the car, even just a little, could unlock significant benefits not just for our community, but for your personal well-being and bank account? It turns out, a less car-dependent life isn’t just good for the planet; it might just be the secret to a happier, healthier, and wealthier you.

    The Invisible Burden of the Daily Drive

    Think about your daily commute or errand run. The stress of traffic, the hunt for the closest parking spot, the honks from tailgaters – it all adds up. While seemingly mundane, this constant reliance on the car can contribute to:

    • Stress and Frustration: Traffic jams, aggressive drivers, and parking woes are significant sources of daily stress.
    • Reduced Physical Activity: Every short car trip is a missed opportunity for walking or cycling, contributing to a more sedentary lifestyle.
    • Social Isolation: Driving often means moving from one private space (your home) to another (your destination) without meaningful interaction, reducing spontaneous community conversations.

    But beyond these, there’s a more insidious burden: the financial cost.

    Your Wallet’s Silent Saver: The Financial Freedom of Less Driving

    Let’s talk money, because for many, this is where the rubber meets the road (or rather, where the rubber doesn’t hit the road, saving you cash). The average cost of owning and operating a car in Canada is substantial. We’re talking upwards of a thousand dollars a month on:

    • Fuel: A volatile expense that drains your budget with every fill-up.
    • Insurance: A non-negotiable, ever-increasing cost.
    • Maintenance & Repairs: Oil changes, tire replacements, and the dreaded “check engine” light.
    • Depreciation: Your car loses value the moment you drive it off the lot.
    • Parking Fees: Even if you’re not paying parking fees directly, the cost of providing “free” parking is baked into everything you buy.

    Reducing your car usage, even if you can’t go entirely car-free, directly translates to savings. Fewer kilometres driven means less fuel, less wear and tear, and you might get so used to it, when it comes time to replace the second car, maybe you realize you don’t need one. Imagine what you could do with an extra few hundred, or even several thousand, dollars a year! A vacation? Home improvements? More date nights at a local, walkable restaurant? The possibilities are surprisingly expansive.

    Beyond the Dollars: The Quality of Life Dividend

    The benefits extend far beyond financial savings. Embracing less car dependency can significantly boost your quality of life:

    • Improved Physical Health: Walking or cycling for errands builds physical activity into your day effortlessly. Even walking to a transit stop adds steps to your routine.
    • Enhanced Mental Well-being: Swapping stressful commutes for active travel can reduce anxiety and improve mood. The simple act of being outdoors and observing your surroundings can be incredibly calming.
    • Stronger Community Connections: When you walk or bike, you’re more likely to encounter neighbours, discover local shops and services, and become more familiar with your immediate surroundings. This fosters a deeper sense of belonging and makes Orleans feel more like a cohesive community, not just a collection of houses connected by roads.
    • Time Reclaimed: While a car might seem faster, the total time spent driving, parking, and maintaining it can be surprising. For shorter trips when you’re able to, walking or cycling can often be quicker, and it certainly frees up mental bandwidth.

    Making the Shift in Orleans: Practical Steps

    Living a less car-dependent life in Orleans isn’t about giving up your car entirely for most people, but about making conscious choices to reduce your reliance on it. This might involve:

    • Identifying Walkable Destinations: Are there local shops, parks, or friends’ houses you could walk or bike to instead of driving?
    • Embracing Public Transit: For trips out of walk or bike range, exploring OC Transpo options can save on gas and parking places like downtown, as long as there is a convenient route.
    • Car-Sharing or Ride-Sharing: For infrequent needs, consider services that provide access to a car without the burden of ownership.
    • Advocating for Better Infrastructure: Supporting initiatives for improved sidewalks, bike lanes, access to transit, and more accessible local amenities directly helps make less-car living easier for everyone in Orleans.

    The road to a less car-dependent life in Orleans offers a compelling return on investment – not just for our community’s future, but for your personal happiness and financial well-being, too. It’s a journey worth taking, one step, or pedal stroke, at a time.

  • Cycling for a Better Ottawa: Shared Roads, Safe Streets, and Sustainable City Planning

    Cycling for a Better Ottawa: Shared Roads, Safe Streets, and Sustainable City Planning

    colorful stairs in city center with cyclists riding bikes
    Photo by Jeffrey Eisen on Pexels.com

    Smart Road Design

    When city council and planners design and approve new safe and connected bike infrastructure and make better use of road space, they’re making smart moves for a greener city, and the benefits for everyone are clear to see. On a route with safe cycling options, when all road users follow traffic rules and respect one another, everyone is able to share the available space better, leading to smoother trips and safe, polite interactions. As more of these bike lanes and safe intersections are built, people are getting better at sharing the road safely.

    Most cyclists, just like most drivers, typically follow traffic rules and respect each others’ space, which makes everyone safer. Cyclists, when involved in collisions with cars, almost always come out worse off than drivers in crashes on our roads. As a more vulnerable road user, the average cyclist typically shows the same understanding of sharing road space as more attentive than average drivers, in that they are more likely to respect that everyone has a right to get around on city streets and share road space as required.

    For example, if you cycle regularly, you’re much more likely to be aware of the advantages of the Idaho stop (treating stop signs with no cross-traffic as yield), and to understand how and why coming to a full stop on a bike is different, and less impactful, than doing so in a car.

    Dealing with dangers caused by distracted or careless drivers is very important. The most effective way to do this is to support transit and safe, accessible–all-ages, all-abilities–active transportation infrastructure, which makes our city roads safer. This group of more vulnerable road users is identified as a priority in our city’s overall traffic plans.

    City leaders know the benefits of reducing reliance on personal car transportation to get around the city, not just to and from work. With more transportation options that are reliable and safe, an average family can save thousands of dollars a year by not buying, fueling, insuring, and parking even just one of their two or even three cars. If you do choose to bike to work even once or twice a week, you may find your gym membership becoming redundant, which could save you money and get you more fresh air all in one.

    Making Cycling Easier

    So why does the city spend an increasing amount on bike routes for an activity that’s becoming easier year-round, a fraction of the cost of car ownership, with a much lower barrier to entry, and a healthy option for almost everyone? Think about all the extra people who can now get around by bike. City investments are making it easier for those who can’t afford one or multiple cars, who have kids to manage, or who are finding new ways to enjoy biking in their communities even if they face accessibility barriers that would prevent them using a ‘standard’ bicycle. As Canada’s capital, Ottawa’s dedication to active ways of getting around shows the city is working hard to be fair, respectful, easy to access, and provide more transportation choices for all its people.

    We urgently need more public transit and people who feel safe cycling in our city, because we can’t build more roads as a solution for current traffic jams and pollution. As more people bike, and money is efficiently spent to keep them safe, the next logical step is to build a road system where everyone works together and respects each other. This means focusing on smart city planning to make roads safer for everyone. This can include safety lessons for drivers as a way to reduce insurance rates, which could focus on vulnerable road users and distracted driving. Safe and connected bike routes across the city will also help people feel more comfortable getting around by bike, especially when they can safely use main roads outside of a car.

    All road users must follow traffic laws and face consequences if they don’t, and car drivers bear added responsibility since they are by far the most likely to injure or kill other road users while driving. We need to prioritize getting everyone where they’re going safely, and that includes being respectful to slower and more vulnerable road users like cyclists and pedestrians where multiple travel modes intersect. We can and should talk about how helmets protect wearers heads, but only within a larger context for overall safety on our streets. This can help everyone understand how to share city spaces better and get around more easily. And how many weekend bike lovers who wouldn’t dare make a grocery trip or run an errand would instead excitedly say: “This is great! Let’s get even more people cycling!”?

    Ottawa’s Transportation Future

    As Ottawa builds a full, easy-to-use, and flexible transportation system – including reliable transit, along with connected and safe bike and walking routes – people will have many attractive choices instead of just relying on cars. This important planning helps deal with the growth from new density and mixed-use facilities that the city’s Official Plan is championing. Our city planners are right to build more bike lanes and promote other sustainable transport options instead of just building more roads. They also continue to use effective traffic calming tactics on our existing roads and come up with creative ways to encourage people to walk and bike. This approach is not only very resilient and sustainable economically, but also good for protecting the environment. It also makes biking a great experience for cyclists, and our roads and streets a better place for everyone.

  • Modernizing Orleans – Feedback on Ottawa’s Transportation Master Plan

    Modernizing Orleans – Feedback on Ottawa’s Transportation Master Plan

    This page is an overview of my feedback on the latest draft of the city of Ottawa’s Transportation Master Plan. There are three additional pages (linked below and in the relevant sections of the page) that complement the analysis.

  • Sprints and Marathons: What Track Meets Can Teach Us About Cars, Bikes, and Better Cities

    Sprints and Marathons: What Track Meets Can Teach Us About Cars, Bikes, and Better Cities

    person riding bicycle near fence
    Photo by Sebastian V. on Pexels.com

    When we talk about city planning and transportation, the conversation often turns into a battle of extremes—cars versus bikes, highways versus bike lanes, speed versus sustainability. But maybe we’re framing the issue all wrong. What if, instead of pitting one against the other, we thought of our transportation network the way we think about a track meet?

    After all, no one shows up to a track meet expecting the sprinters to beat the marathoners at long-distance events—or vice versa. Each athlete shines in their own event because they’re using their body in the most efficient way possible for the distance and conditions. Transportation should be no different.

    The Marathoner: Cars

    Cars are the long-distance runners of our transportation ecosystem. They’re built for endurance, capable of handling long trips with relative comfort and speed. Need to travel across town, to the suburbs, or between cities? That’s a marathon—and the car excels. Like a long-distance runner who maintains a steady pace over kilometers of terrain, cars perform best when they can travel uninterrupted over long stretches.

    But we don’t expect marathoners to be nimble in a short dash, and we shouldn’t expect cars to be agile in short, stop-and-go urban trips either. In dense environments, their size, speed, and storage requirements start to look more like liabilities than strengths.

    The Sprinter: Bicycles

    Enter the sprinter—the bicycle. Bikes are unmatched in short-distance speed and efficiency, especially in an urban context. Like the 100-meter dash, a bike ride across a neighborhood is quick, elegant, and often faster than driving once you factor in traffic, stoplights, and parking.

    Bikes don’t need much space. They start and stop easily. They work well when things are close together, when the “track” is smooth, direct, and safe. In a compact city core or residential area, they’re the ideal sprinter—quick off the line, light on their feet, and capable of weaving through dense infrastructure with grace.

    Designing the Right Track

    Just like we wouldn’t ask a marathoner to run a 200-meter dash on a twisty, narrow track, we shouldn’t ask cars to dominate city cores—or ask bikes to survive on wide, fast roads built for speed and distance. Good transportation planning isn’t about declaring a winner. It’s about designing a city where each “athlete” has a course tailored to their strengths.

    That means:

    • Protected bike lanes and calm streets for short urban trips—the 100m dashes of daily life.
    • Efficient arterial roads and intercity connections for longer trips—the marathons that keep the regional economy flowing.
    • Seamless transitions between modes of travel—like sprinters handing off to distance runners in a weird hybrid relay (OK I stretched the metaphor too far 😆).

    Playing to Our Strengths

    The takeaway? Bikes aren’t a niche option for the hyper-fit or environmentally zealous. They’re the “sprinters” of the transportation world—ideal for quick trips, local errands, and everyday commutes. Cars still have a role to play—but let’s stop asking them to run sprints they’re not built for. And let’s stop designing our cities like every trip is a marathon.

    Let’s give each mode the space to do what it does best.

  • A Superpowered City

    A Superpowered City

    a boy wearing a superman costume
    Photo by Vicki Yde on Pexels.com

    In the bustling city of Metropolis, a groundbreaking research project promised to change the world. The project, funded by the wealthiest citizens, aimed to replicate the powers of Superman. For a hefty fee, participants could gain super strength, flight, and other extraordinary abilities. As more people joined the project, Metropolis began to transform.

    Skyscrapers reached new heights, with landing pads for flying individuals. Streets were widened to accommodate super-speed runners, and buildings were reinforced to withstand the impact of superhuman strength. The city was becoming a paradise for the super-powered.

    However, as Metropolis evolved, the lives of ordinary citizens grew increasingly difficult. Public transportation systems were neglected, as flying became the preferred mode of travel. Elevators were replaced with vertical tunnels designed for those who could leap tall buildings in a single bound. Sidewalks were narrowed to make room for high-speed lanes, leaving little space for pedestrians.

    For those without superpowers, daily life became a struggle. Commuting to work was a nightmare, with limited options and overcrowded buses. Navigating the city on foot was hazardous, as they had to dodge super-speeders and avoid areas designated for superhuman activities. Access to essential services became challenging, as many buildings were only accessible to those who could fly or leap great distances.

    The disparity between the super-powered and the ordinary citizens grew wider. Those who couldn’t afford the expensive procedure felt left behind, trapped in a city that no longer catered to their needs. The once vibrant community spirit of Metropolis began to fade, replaced by a sense of isolation and frustration.

    In the end, the city of super-people faced a critical choice. Would they continue to prioritize the needs of the few, or would they find a way to create a more inclusive society? The future of Metropolis hung in the balance, as its citizens grappled with the consequences of their pursuit of power.

    Cars are a superpower, and life without them now seems impossible for many, because every aspect of our life is dependent on superpowers. Good thing Superman doesn’t need to park.