Active Transportation/Transport Actif

This week we have a guest blog from The Daily Bike/Le Vélo Quotidien, a blog run by Ruepublique member Maclean. Maclean's blog talks about his life as a cyclist and why more people should join him in using their cars less and their bike more.
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Cette semaine nous avons un blog invité de Le Vélo Quotidien/The Daily Bike, un blog par Maclean, un membre de Ruepublique. Le blog de Maclean parle sur sa vie comme un cycliste et pourquoi plus de personnes devrait utiliser leur voiture moins et leur vélo plus.

'One of the recurring themes RuePublique likes to entertain is that of promoting active transportation. They do so for a number of good reasons.

Transport actif  is basically anything that amounts to some form of exercise while getting you around, and can be more than just good for the heart: it often is thoroughly economical and equally practical too. By definition, transportation by motorised means does not qualify as active transportation, but to be fair all modes of transport lie along a spectrum, if you will, where some forms of vehicular transport involve much more activity than others: Running to catch a bus, or walking the stairs up from a metro like Lucien l’allier are, after all, somewhat active indeed. On the far end of the spectrum there’s passive transportation: moving about with as little effort as possible. It’s a sort of Faustian dream come true, but of course it comes at a huge expense.

Without dwelling too much here on the well-documented negative effects that the convenience of the personal automobile has had of the fabric of urban communities; or on the drawbacks that accompany urban/suburban sprawl; or on the global implications of our dependence on petroleum and of the consequences of emitting greenhouse gasses on a global industrial scale, suffice it to say that active transport is one of the key tools in the “green tool-kit” that most urbanites are at least physically, intellectually and possibly psychologically capable of embracing.

Indeed, if we are genuinely serious about “tackling” climate change, or promoting healthy lifestyles by reducing pollution and increasing physical activity, embracing active transport is a no-brainer. And to be fair, mainstream programs like the Bixi initiative represent a good first step. But to make a real difference we’ve got to inspire more people to go much deeper into active transport and leave their cars parked at home. So in fact we should settle on a number, eventually: a percentage of traffic as a target. That way we can measure our success in real terms, and once we get there we can truly assess the impact and benefits of the changes.

Let’s aim high. Let’s get some 30% of cars off the road, and get those thousands of people onto bikes (or at least onto buses), in all kinds of weather, with all kinds of technical adaptations that will accommodate this with the greatest degree of convenience as possible.

But of course, before we get there, we have a lot of work cut out for ourselves. Not only are we talking about a massive publicity campaign that will require help from industry, and from all levels of government, but we are also talking about accommodating a whole new faction into the existing culture of cycling. This means not only asking car-drivers to accord more space on a regular basis, but also asking seasoned cyclists to foster a welcoming atmosphere for the great number of novice cyclists who will be struggling, for a time, up a fairly steep learning curve. Those seasoned cyclists are a privileged few who get away with a lot because they slip through the cracks of the traffic laws and bylaws. But if we collectively succeed in converting to bicycle-based day-to-day operations (ie. a significant increase in cyclists on the street on a daily basis, all year long), we will have to have a much more established set of ground rules. Drivers and seasoned cyclists alike are going to have to accommodate the masses and the potential chaos.

This is no small challenge. Biking is scary to a lot of people : from anarchist bike couriers to monster SUVs and snow removal trucks, there’s a lot to be afraid of. …Not to mention those novices who do dare to, say, ride a Bixi occasionally; they are often quite dangerous in their own right!

But as far as I’m concerned, this is the only way forward. The requirements not only of our moral and legal obligations under the Kyoto protocol, but also of the new realities of economics and Nature’s limits that are now just beginning to press down upon our global economic systems, are such that we will have to make these and/ or similar changes across the board, eventually. In no way should the world of future be envisioned as one fuelled by the same means as our recent past. You could wait for technology to change its course in due time (but don’t hold your breath), or you could embrace the established “old” technology of cycling that is proven, reliable, and fun.'

Cycling in the Mile End/Cyclisme dans le Mile End

An interesting discussion began at last month's Comité des Citoyens du Mile End at Bar Waverley about cyclists and their respect, or lack of, for the laws of the road. Reports of traffic signals being ignored and cyclists going against the flow of traffic were just two of the examples cited. Most cyclists would probably acknowledge that they have witnessed this kind of behaviour from their two wheeled comrades, and few could honestly say they've never been the guilty party themselves. So what should be done? 

On the one hand, Ruepublique is passionate about public safety on the streets of the Mile End, so any vehicles disobeying traffic laws are clearly a concern. However, from a practical perspective, bicycles need to continue to be encouraged as a form of transport within the community. They possess crucial advantages over cars: they are far less likely to cause accidents which result in injury or worse; they have an extremely low carbon footprint; and they provide physical exercise as part of a healthy lifestyle. Bicycles are neither cars nor pedestrians, but they are far closer to pedestrians on the scale of human mobility. Recognizing the importance of the bicycle, some local residents at November's meeting suggested cyclists should be viewed differently to cars and that certain traffic rules should differ for cyclists (eg. yielding instead of stopping at stop signs and being able to go against traffic on one-way streets). This is an approach that Ruepublique is very interested in pursuing. Similar schemes already exist, for example, the Netherlands has over 6000 'Woonerven', streets where cyclists and pedestrians have legal priority over cars.

Ruepublique will be organising an event with the Comité des Citoyens du Mile End in early 2012 to discuss this issue further and hear the thoughts of local residents. Please join the conversation by offering your thoughts below. Ruepublique will post further details about the event once we have them, as well as our own response to how cycling can continue to be encouraged, yet respect other road users.
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Une discussion intéressante a été entamée le mois dernier au sein du Comité des Citoyens du Mile End, lors d'une réunion au Bar Waverly, à propos des cyclistes et de leur respect du code de la route, ou plutôt de leur manque de respect. Des rapports de cyclistes ignorants les signaux de circulation ou encore roulants à contresens ne sont que deux exemples parmi tous ceux ayant été cités. La plupart des cyclistes reconnaîtraient probablement qu'ils ont déjà été témoin de ce type de comportement de la part de leurs camarades à deux roues, mais peu d'entre eux seraient prêt à avouer qu'ils en sont eux-même coupable. Alors quoi faire?


D'un côté, Ruepublique a à coeur la sécurité publique dans les rues du Mile End, donc tout  véhicule désobéissant au code de la route est clairement un souci. Cependant, d'un point de vue pratique, il est important de continuer d'encourager l'utilisation du vélo comme moyen de transport dans la communauté. Il possède des avantages cruciaux par rapport à la voiture : les chances qu'il cause des accidents avec blessures ou pire sont moins grandes; il a une empreinte carbone (ou empreinte écologique) extrêmement faible; et il contribue à un mode de vie sain en procurant de l'activité physique. Les bicyclettes ne sont ni des voitures, ni des piétons, mais ils sont beaucoup plus près des piétons sur l'échelle de la mobilité humaine. Reconnaissants l'importance de la bicyclette, quelques résidents locaux ont suggéré à la réunion de novembre que les cyclistes devraient être vue différemment des voitures et que certains codes de la route devraient donc différer pour eux (ex : céder le passage au lieu d'arrêter aux signaux d'arrêt et être capable d'aller en sens contraire de la circulation dans les rues à sens unique). Ceci est une approche que Ruepublique est très intéressée de poursuivre. Des arrangements similaires existent déjà ailleurs. La Hollande, par exemple, possède plus de 6000 "Woonerven" : des rues où les cyclistes et les piétons ont priorité légale sur les voitures.


Ruepublique organisera un évènement avec le Comité des Citoyens du Mile End au début de 2012 pour discuter de ce sujet et pour entendre plus amplement les idées des résidents locaux. Si vous le désirez, vous pouvez vous joindre à la conversation en offrant vos idées sur ce blogue. Ruepublique affichera plus de détails à propos de l'évènement lorsque nous en aurons, ainsi que notre propre réponse sur comment le cyclisme peut continuer à être encouragé tout en respectant les autres usagés de la route.

Mission in Action

A month has passed now since ruePublique’s last instalment of Journées des Bons Voisins of 2011 took place, and the group has had the time to relax and reflect on our success and good fortune. Indeed, we had our first meeting since just this past week-end and the consensus was that ruePublique has gained enough momentum in the form of recognition and support that we will indeed continue in our work. What this means is that yes, we can all look forward to another summer of street parties in 2012; but what’s more, it looks as though you will not have to wait until then before some other ruePublique activity comes your way. That’s right folks! We have begun the brainstorming process that will bring public space surprises to the neighbourhood over the course of the fall, winter and spring months ahead. And, as always we are open to like-minded volunteers who would like to jump aboard and help out in any number of ways.

The catch, if there is one, is what does “like minded” actually refer to? I say this because ruePublique has had something of an identity crisis over it’s short lifetime. First, having donned the completely different name of CarFreeMileEndsansvoitures for the first year and a half, then working under the very vague banner of Journées des Bons Voisins, ruePublique’s identity was obscured somewhat, at times confusing supporters and on-lookers alike. This is not to take away from the concerted efforts of the group to define our mission, articulate our objectives and share in our research findings, especially at our last street event.  It’s just that you would be forgiven if you had already visited all of our events and even volunteered at them, without fully knowing what the heck ruePublique, as a would-be non-profit organization stands for.

Meanwhile, would I be forgiven for pulling out my hair at the thought of rewriting a sort of “mission statement” for the forty-third time?

Well, no. I wouldn’t forgive myself, since there’s less hair to spare with every passing day…

In fact I am glad to do it. Every time I do so, it comes out a little bit different, and it must just be part of the process of a group’s evolution and development. For sure, our vision and objectives have changed since we first started CarFreeMileEndsansvoitures, as is reflected in the name change to ruePublique. Personally I have learned so much stuff, and have met so many fantastic people that I have the pleasure of working with, and who have helped to shape the group into what it is today: a would be non-profit group focusing on the public space of the street as a means to realise change in our own back-yard. And as young as the group is, it does have roots, firmly planted in the culture of what might be called urban ecology, with motivations stemming from global “carbon” issues that also pose economic and political challenges that can well be addressed in our own back yard.

To sum up our mission, then, in a few sentences, I came up with the following:

Embracing the adage of thinking globally and acting locally, ruePublique exists in order to improve the chances of one urban community’s ability to respond to the crises of unsustainable activity surrounding us. By raising awareness, providing information and engaging in dialogue as well as providing tangible examples of ecologically minded actions, we hope to inspire people to work toward reducing their carbon footprint, individually and collectively.

This is a work in progress, as is the whole ruePublique project: it is all about the dialogue. Actions will generate discourse. Discourse will raise awareness. Awareness maay inspire the will to engage, and seek change. Change in our environment begets a general change in consciousness, which in turn determines our actions… At least this is the theory of cyclical evolution that I hope for.

As always, I remain open to commentary and guest/ member contributions here on this blog. So feel free to reply!

P.S. translations too, are always welcome!

Who is ruepublique?

We are a local community group who collaborate with urban planners and local stakeholders in working toward tangible measures and real changes to the current use of the public realm known as “the street”. So far we have focused on the heart of our neighbourhood, la rue St. Viateur.

Formerly known as Car Free Mile End sans voitures, ruepublique is made up of a team of volunteers who work toward summer-time, week-end street closures under the banner of “journées des bons voisins” -- our next event, on the 18th of September, being the last of the season.

“We started this project because we have perceived problems with what we’ve been told to consider as normal. Once you start making connections, you can say on the one hand, the status quo just isn’t right, and on the other, what little push in the public realm can help lift us out of the rut? The main purpose is for the research to continue and hopefully at the same time people’s understanding of the issues evolves, and we can make real changes in response to this kind of question.”

Journées des bons voisins is essentially your neighbourhood street party with a purpose. This is not modeled on the St. Jean parties of yore, nor is what we do going to resemble rue Ste. Catherine in the Village. As you walk up and down St. Viateur today, you will find an array of cultural activity coming from a number of different community groups, small businesses and local artists, as well as some great bike technicians at our free bike-repair tent!

Results of Research Published

Next week's street closure is timed to coincide with International Car Free week. In this context, the group is pleased to present a recent McGill report entitled Repenser/Rethinking St. Viateur – a document containing results and analysis from their recent surveys, workshops and other research that began in early 2010. This document will serve as a tool for further the dialogue within the community, concerning prospective changes to the current arrangement of public space, street amenities and quality of life in the neighbourhood.

Keep your eyes peeled for the ruepublique booth at our upcoming event.

All are welcome to discuss the street, public space, and the theme of car-free living. This will be the best chance yet for local residents and merchants alike to interact and participate in the ongoing dialogue that ruePublique has initiated.

 “If we want to somehow curb pollution and urban sprawl, and start retaining more families in town, it is essential to create safer and stronger communities, and offer a quality of living which cannot be reproduced in the suburbs. ”