Canada Urges Use of Sustainable Transportation
The government of Canada will invest $4 million over three years in ecoMOBILITY initiatives. This funding is part of a $10-million program announced last year to help Canadians protect their health and environment by giving them more sustainable transportation choices. The announcement was made by Lawrence Cannon, minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities and by John Baird, minister of the Environment.
"The ecoMOBILITY program will reduce emissions from the urban passenger transportation sector by helping municipalities attract residents to less polluting forms of transportation, such as public transit and carpooling," said Cannon. "Today I am pleased to announce that Transport Canada has launched the request for proposals for transportation demand management projects under the ecoMOBILITY program. A total of $4 million is available to municipalities and regional transportation authorities for initiatives that can help residents increase their use of sustainable transportation options."
The ecoMOBILITY program will help cities develop policies, programs and services that make it more convenient for people to reduce personal car use and choose more environmentally friendly options, such as public transit or carpooling. This program complements ongoing efforts to address air emissions and congestion from all transportation sectors.
"Today's announcement demonstrates our government's commitment to reducing greenhouse gases and air pollution," said Baird. "Canadians have said they want to do their part in fighting climate change. Programs such as ecoMOBILITY can help them take real action at home by choosing more environmentally friendly options to get them to work or school."
Examples of the measures that the ecoMOBILITY program will encourage include:
• policies such as land use guidelines that complement increased use of sustainable transportation options (for example, development approval policies that mandate access to transit services);
• programs to raise awareness and motivate changes in personal travel choices (for example, workplace-based commuter options programs that engage staff and market new incentives to reduce single occupancy vehicle trips to and from work);
• services that offer individuals a tangible benefit or disbenefit related to the use of particular travel modes (for example, guaranteed ride home programs for carpool members or reduced parking rates for carpool vehicles); and
• products that make sustainable transportation more convenient (for example, enhanced transit information services or online ride matching systems for workplaces).