Sustainable
Transportation Program

Why take action?

In urban areas, automobiles are a major source of air pollution and noise. They degrade the visual environment and ultimately the quality of life of the people who live there. Substantial automobile use generates a large quantity of greenhouse gases, which are the primary cause of climate change. Extreme weather phenomena, such as floods, forest fires, heat waves, droughts, and shortages of drinking water are multiplying and intensifying to a worrying degree. These incidents have serious impacts on our society including social costs that keep rising. Our dependence on automobiles also leads to negative effects on public health. For example, air pollution significantly aggravates many health problems, such as asthma, allergies, and other respiratory conditions.

Besides the obvious effects on our health and the environment, the increase of motorized vehicles directly chips away at the fabric of our society. Owning a car brings on many personal costs: monthly payments, insurance, gas, parking, and maintenance. Using a car also takes a heavy toll on taxpayers because of costs related to accidents, hospitalizations, road congestion and infrastructure maintenance. The quality of life in neighborhoods is equally affected by the presence of the large number of cars as well as heavy traffic. This creates stress for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.

Giving out tools for citizens' action
Through its Sustainable Transportation Program, Équiterre aims to make the population aware of the environmental impact of their transportation habits, namely which modes of transportation they choose and what distance they cover. The goal is to help people change their routines in order to become less car-dependent. The progam encourages them not only to choose more sustainable habits but also to pressure elected officials about these concerns and about the need to develop infrastructures that support ecological transport.

Information booths, conferences, workshops :
inform, create awareness, discuss and train
Throughout the year, Équiterre holds information booths at various events and organizes workshops on transportation and climate change and present tangible solutions to these problems. Also, on occasion, Équiterre organizes conferences with diverse experts such as David Suzuki, Hubert Reeves, and Enrique Penalosa.

Toolbox
Équiterre provides citizens with different educational tools including kits, pamphlets and posters, to help them take action. The most comprehensive tool is the Transportation Cocktail kit that allows people to discover alternative modes of transportation that reduce impacts on the environment and public health, while saving money. Also, there is an online calculation tool [ in French ] that lets visitors compute the financial and environmental costs related to their transportation choices. To better understand the different questions of what's at stake when it comes to transportation, there are information sheets [ in French ] on climate change, bicycles, automobiles, urban planning, and the Transportation Cocktail.

Creating awareness among decision makers
Équiterre also brings environmental issues that relate to transportation and urban planning to the attention of policy makers. In order to do this, Équiterre identifies a certain number of measures that decision makers can put in place and action plans aiming at adopting those measures. Équiterre also participates in public and democratic processes to promote these solutions. Recently, Équiterre presented briefs during the public consultation for Montreal's urban plan [ pdf, in French ] as well as the provincial sustainable development plan [ pdf, in French ]. Équiterre closely follows governmental policies in view of meeting the objectives of the Kyoto Protocol.

Since the fall of 2003, Équiterre has actively participated in the Coalition in Support of Public Transportation, whose objective is to assure accessibility of, and better funding for, public transportation. The campaign, titled Laissez-nous Respirer (Let Us Breathe), mobilizes citizens, especially through petitions and messages directed to elected officials.

Ongoing Transportation Cocktail Campaign

On September 5, 2003, Équiterre launched its Transportation Cocktail an awareness campaign specifically aimed at young adults, who are often at juncture in life when they make choices about a car purchase and where they'll live. The first phase of the campaign introduced the Transportation Cocktail as an alternative to single car occupancy, its implications and its advantages. The second phase, which is ongoing, aims at surmounting the obstacles to behavioral change. More specifically, this phase facilitates the adoption of more sustainable habits and proposes individual solutions adapted to various situation. In order to do so, a new tool has been developped : Personalized Transportation Plans [ in French ]. These are a group of recommendations to counsel people who want to travel more efficiently and learn more about alternatives.

Our objectives: to better inform people about the existing solutions, answer questions, and break down myths and eliminate fears in order to facilitate the move to a lifestyle that is less car-dependent.

Now it's up to you!

Join the Transportation Cocktail Club and stay connected to a community that shares your interests and values by being in touch with what's happening in the area of transportation and urban planning. It's another good way to equip yourself with the proper tools or convince those close to you to change their habits. The members can also mobilize to pressure the government into developping and improving sustainable transportation infrastructures.

Don't hesitate to contact us to learn more. Get informed and spread the word! Invite us to a conference or workshop in your area. We all win, environmentally, economically, and socially. Cheers!

This campain was made possible with financial support from: