The options for green transportation alternatives is not limited to buying a hybrid car. More and more people in major cities around the world — and across Canada are chosing to live walkable lifestyles. They are choosing to live, work and shop in a very confined area and using transit when needing to go on appointments or to events. Alternatively, some people are choosing to use a combination of cycling and walking. Others choose to use mainly transit. The other alternative that many people have not researched or considered is a Car Co-op.

The car co-op is almost like a shared car. It is like a crossover between a car rental and ‘a drive your own taxi’ that is pre-booked and reserved for you at the time you need. Most co-ops allow you to book by the hour or by the half day. The participants essentially own shares in the cars and book cars to match their personal needs. Most often you are able to use any of the vehicles owned by the organization. This means if you need a small truck to move a piece of furniture, you are able to book one. For some people this system is very effective. The cars are kept at vaious locations, usually in central high population areas of the city. It is almost necessary to live within a few blocks of where the vehicles are kept, otherwise the disadvantage of needing to take transit, or cycle to the location counterbalances any advantages of getting a car for a few hours or a half day.

Other advantages of car-share programs is the cost of insurance and car repairs are shared by many people rather than having a car you own independently. In other ways, it does not necessarily equate to reduced carbon emissions - other than perhaps encouraging the shareholders to think twice about how often and where they drive — something most car owners do not do.

The options for using transit in a major city is always challenged by the degree to which the public is willing to use it as a major means of transportation. There are many questions that arise. Obviously, the same size of bus drives the route during rush hour as during the non-peak mid-day hours. The question is — how is this as effective at reducing carbon emissions as they would like us to believe. Clearly, the stats indicate that per rider the average carbon emmisions when compared to car ownership is significantly better. However, the inconvenience of transit still results in most of the public opting to drive — even when parking prices and gas prices are through the roof.

While Bicycling is an option, it is often fraught with risk factors. Not everyone is willing to ride on streets - even streets designated as bicycle paths, are fraught with parked cars, light car traffic and the need to cross major streets. Widespread speeding, reckless driving and general disrespect for cyclists and pedestrians make the streets feel unsafe. If we are truly wanting to encourage people to use bikes, it is necessary to make it safer and easier. The other challenge is no matter what Canadian city you talk about the weather is often not conducive to cycling. In Vancouver and Victoria, the rain makes riding no fun. In other cities, long winter months make it unfeasible most of the year.

Safety is a huge issue for pedestrians also. At the coast where it rains a lot in the winter it is next to impossible to see pedestrians dressed in dark colors. Yet, the majority of pedestrians do not wear reflective clothing, or ligher colors that show more easily on dark rainy nights. Calgary has solved a lot of the problems of pedestrians in the downtown core by building a system called the “Plus 15″ — a series of ‘hallways’ across the streets across the streets. It is easy to get anywhere downtown without going outside. This is great when the weather is minus 20, in the dead of winter.

Definately, the advancements of vehicles that are more energy efficient,including but not limited to hybrid cars, are making strides in the right direction by comparison of the cars of the 80’s. Nevertheless, the question remains “is it enough, soon enough”. There are also many things we can do to reduce our carbon emissions. Learning to be consciencious about how often we drive, car pooling and combining errands. The answers are not simple, but everytime we make a choice to walk, car share or cycle, we are making a difference.

Posted on September 11th, 2008 under Transportation. Tags: bicycling, car pooling, carbon emmissions, cycle, taxi, transit, walk, walkable. Comments: None