The Future of Transportation in Canada needs some Urbanism

So this is the infographic describing Transport 2030, A strategic plan for the future of transportation in Canada. It really seems that the summary provided so far is missing the mark on urban transportation issues. Read on for my thoughts...

While this is the Federal Governments strategic transportation plan, and technically, the Federal Government does not plan, design or maintain our Municipal or Provincial transportation systems, it just doesn't seem right that a Country wide transportation plan would ignore the issues most pressing to everyone in their day to day lives.

It would be nice just to provide some progressive direction that can trickle down from the top and help support (or nudge if necessary) Provincial and Municipal governments towards a more sustainable transportation system.

While they don't plan it, they do provide funding towards local projects, perhaps there could be a Federal mode hierarchy that is used to allocate funding for municipal and provincial projects on the basis of their ability to support a shift to sustainable transportation. Now that would be interesting! 

Below are the actions for the five different themes with some commentary provided in red following each one, oh, and a 6th Theme... Urban Transportation, just in case anyone in the Federal Government happens to read this...

Theme 1: The Traveller : Where we go from here

​We will:

• work with industry to implement clear and fair consumer protection rules for air travellers, while not imposing undue cost burdens on the air sector and on travellers -  Consumer protection, ok, not a bad thing, but not something I've had a major issue with in my experience, should just be done rather than a long term goal.
• change the rules on international ownership for Canadian air carriers to encourage more competition in the air transport sector while ensuring that safeguards are in place to mitigate any associated risks - Lower prices brought on by more competition, are we essentially saying we're open to foreign markets, thus diluting Canadian businesses? Also lower costs and more carriers = more trips = more emissions, not convinced by this one.
• implement new publicly accountable service standards and increase efficiency to limit the amount of time travellers wait in airport security checkpoints for screening by the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) - Not really a high priority for me, I'd rather know everyone was being checked properly. 
• work with other federal departments to make the transportation system more accessible for persons with disabilities. This will improve transportation choices for consumers - Accessibility for those with disabilities is always a good thing, i'm ok with this one.
• look at the potential for high frequency rail in the Quebec City Windsor corridor, as an option for reliable, more rapid inter-city passenger rail service - this also seems like a good idea, slightly too location specific for a Canada wide plan, how about examine the need for high frequency rail in all our major cities?
• make it easier for ferry operators on the East Coast to upgrade their fleets and provide reliable service - Again, east coast specific, are these being held back by federal government? How about providing extra funding for BC ferries to make travel more affordable for those on the sunshine coast to access the rest of the mainland.
• make sure our actions support work on government priorities, such as Canada’s progressive trade and investment plan, a federal tourism strategy, and planned accessibility legislation - Accessibility already mentioned, trade infrastructure mentioned in other sections and not really traveller related, tourism is important so i'm good with that one.
• be investing $62 million in electric car charging and low-emission fueling stations. I can live with this one, encouraging the switch over to electric vehicles is one major part of lower our transportation emissions.

So we seem to be missing a few travelers here, what about all those trips by walking, cycling and transit (outside of the Quebec City Windsor corridor). The plan seems focused on long distance travelers and their rights rather than focusing on shorter distance trips we make every day.
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Theme 2: Safety: Where we go from here

We will: 

• continue to build a safer, more secure system that Canadians trust - That sounds great, I suspect its referring to air safety and vehicle safety though rather than say pedestrian and cyclists. Needs to be more specific.
• speed up our review of the Railway Safety Act originally scheduled for 2018, to build on our actions on railway safety standards over the past 10 months, and to respond to the House of Commons Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities’ report called "An Update on Rail Safety” - No problem with this one.
• amend the Motor Vehicle Safety Act to allow us to compel vehicle manufacturers to recall defective and unsafe vehicles and provide for substantial fines if companies fail to comply with the rules - I had assumed such measures were already in place, somewhat worrying if they are not.
• make our regulatory framework more flexible to allow industry to introduce new automotive technologies, while maintaining safety - I'm dubious about this one, flexibility essentially means uncontrolled. Features like the Tesla "Tablet" infotainment system and even Apple Carplay and Android Auto effectively allow you to use your phone while driving, but its ok because its embedded in your dashboard! I think these touchscreens which are new automotive technologies, are distracting and potentially dangerous. Of course collision avoidance up to fully autonomous systems offer great potential to improve safety, so on the whole i'm ok with this one but it needs limits.
• expand our use of technology to improve security at airports - No problem with this one.
• make sure our actions support work on government priorities, such as ensuring Canadians are safe, strengthening international partnerships and a national innovation agenda - this one is a bit vague, but I can live with it.

So that was the safety part, very little about street design, enforcement, separation of users on different modes, seems like we'll just wait for technology to come along and save the day.
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Theme 3: Green and Innovative: Where we go from here

​We will:

• work with provinces and territories through a pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change to ensure we are doing all we can to support the transformation to a low-carbon transportation system - Electric vehicles will obviously play a large part here assuming electricity is generated cleanly. I would have liked to see some comments on reducing trips or mode shift here.
• promote ways the transportation system can adapt to the changing climate. This is very important in Canada’s North, where thawing permafrost affects the efficiency and safety of existing infrastructure and provides a challenge to maintenance operations - Very big issue and likely one that will require significant rebuilding and maintenance, may be too late for electric vehicles and mode shift to reverse such things.
• continue to seek the right balance in regulating UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) technology. UAVs are contributing to advances in scientific research, exploration and rescue operations. We believe a strong UAV industry will need predictable, enforceable regulations that promote safety and foster economic growth - I guess this is the innovation part, rather than green, I know nothing about the UAV industry so no real comment here, I guess I could say i'm surprised it makes it as one of the top actions.
• support the safe and rapid deployment of connected and automated vehicles on our public roads to improve road safety; reduce congestion; increase mobility; protect the environment; and support economic opportunities for Canadian businesses - This is a big one, and there is much debate whether they will solve congestion (greater efficiency, more car sharing) or make it worse (owners being driven to work and sending their car home to avoid parking charges). I hope the government can legislate this technology in such a way that it does provide a benefit for congested urban areas. Could it be permitted for car sharing only?  
• make sure our actions support work on government priorities, such as Canada’s Phase 2 infrastructure plan, a pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change, and a national innovation agenda

Given this is the green category, I would have liked to see more emphasis on encouraging travel by sustainable modes of walking, cycling and transit through prioritized infrastructure funding for those modes. I'm curious how much funding the federal Government gives to road and highway projects v other modes.
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Theme 4: Waterways, Coasts and the North: Where we go from here

We will:

• continue working on the Government’s promised moratorium on tanker traffic on the northern coast of British Columbia and stronger protection for our coastlines and coastal areas - Can't argue here, protection is a good thing, suggests other coastal areas are less valuable though.
• work with territorial governments, Indigenous people, and communities in the North to address their basic transportation infrastructure needs and adapt the transportation system to a changing climate - Not too specific, but seems like a good thing.
• look at ways to realize the full economic potential of our coast and waterways over the long-term, including the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway system - This one conflicts a little with protecting our waterways and coasts, economic activity likely brings risk.
• develop a long-term strategy to address the problem of abandoned vessels and wrecks - Do we need a strategy for this or just pay someone to remove them?  
• make sure our actions support work on government priorities, such as trade and transportation investment under the Phase 2 Infrastructure Plan, a pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change, and protect our sensitive coastal areas - Kind of a catch all again...

 Theme 5: Trade Corridors to Global Markets: Where we go from here

​We will:

• build capacity and reduce supply chain congestion as part of the Government’s $81 billion investment in infrastructure over the next eleven years - This sounds like highway and rail projects, fine in principal, but new capacity means new emissions, how does that fit with climate goals?
• establish a new data regime to support sound investment decisions by government, and make sure that data is available to all who operate, oversee, analyze and use the transportation system - This is vague but i'm all for open data so hopefully yields some benefits.
• look at new ways to finance transportation infrastructure projects in partnership with other levels of government and the private sector - Perhaps the businesses that benefit directly from such trade infrastructure improvements can pay their way, or would that just limit trade and thus the economy...
• make infrastructure investments to address bottlenecks in important trade corridors, including rail export corridors
• work on greater transparency in the rail transportation supply chain, take a more balanced approach for stakeholders, and support a more competitive and efficient rail sector
• make sure our actions support work on government priorities, such as Canada’s progressive trade and investment plan, a pan-Canadian framework on clean growth and climate change, and a national innovation agenda

New Theme 6: Urban Transportation: Where we go from here
(Just to be clear, this one is fake, just my thoughts)

We will:

• Develop a federal hierarchy of transportation modes and provide funding to Municipal and Provincial Governments at a ratio consistent with that hierarchy.
• Encourage Municipal and Provincial governments to implement rapid transit improvements ahead of any urban highway widening.
• Strive towards a minimum grid protected bike lane network in all of our downtown's.
• Begin to develop solutions (i.e. road pricing) to control demand for limited roadway space.

That's a few things I think would be helpful, any other ideas for our Federal Government to look at?