Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/126959
hot topics Flowgonomics A moving look at traffic congestion by Ian MacNeill tolerance and leads to work absences. Overall, though, it's a challenge to figure out how we got here and where we are going, particularly when an estimated 28,000 more cars are turned loose every year in the Lower Mainland alone. But government policy-makers insist they recognize there is a problem, and that everyone – from B.C. traffic engineers to neighbourhood community groups – is pitching in to develop solutions. After all, there's no magic bullet. The addition of strategically placed infrastructure such as the new Port Mann Bridge and South Fraser Perimeter We want to go where we want to go. But getting there – aye, there's the rub, as Road can help alleviate congestion in some Hamlet might say were he considering the areas, "but simply pouring more concrete to traffic congestion that's as ubiquitous in our make car travel faster isn't the answer," says province as it is exasperating. The bridges Vancouver's director of transportation Jerry Dobrovolny. Because in addileading into Vancouver can be tion to bedevilling existing a nightmare. Don't think naviB.C.'S Worst traffic patterns (sometimes for gating downtown Ganges on Roads! years while construction lasts), Salt Spring Island on market From traffic congestion to such 'improvements' are soon day is any less vexing, either. potholes, poor road conditions affect us all. Nominate a overwhelmed after compleNor is traffic congestion a particularly despised road in tion. They simply make car mere petty annoyance. It is BCAA's "Worst Roads" survey. travel easier and, therefore, enormously costly in terms of bcaa.com/worstroads attract even more cars. productivity and human At the same time, "crehealth. It also wastes an inordinate amount of precious resources, with ative" engineering solutions can have a posinearly 11 billion litres of gasoline idled away tive impact, notes Ed Miska, a traffic engineer annually in U.S. traffic snarls alone, according with the provincial government, which is why there's a steady increase in traffic-calmto the A&M Transportation Institute. ing roundabouts throughout the province's urban centres. Many Costs In fact, the Urban Transportation Task Force puts Canada's total bill in lost productivity Planning Matters and resources at $3.1 to $4.6 billion a year – Lastly, it's also about personal responsibility, just for its nine major urban areas. Then there adopting an "eco" approach to driving, says are the human costs, mental and physical. Dobrovolny. For drivers, this can mean experAccording to the Ontario Chapter of the Col- imenting with alternatives: "Walk, ride a bike, lege of Family Physicians of Canada (CFPC), take a bus, ride share, because it's hard to traffic congestion impairs health, psychologi- know what might work until you've tried it." cal adjustment, work performance and over- And maybe one of those alternatives will all satisfaction with life. In fact, for every hour work, at least for part of the commuting week, spent in a car, there is a six per cent increase in leading to financial savings, improved mental the likelihood of obesity. In other words, it and physical health (including less stress) and, upsets us emotionally, reduces frustration of course, a rosier environmental future. istock p40-41_HotTop.indd 41 The New Commute DR. JINHUA ZHAO is a UBC civil engineering professor and an internationally renowned consultant on travel behaviour and transport policy. He also serves as commissioner of the China Planning Network, a think tank focusing on China's urbanization. We spoke to him about Vancouver's notorious congestion reputation. WW According to the spring 2013 TomTom Congestion Index, Vancouver is the worst city in Canada and second-worst in North America for traffic congestion — on par with notoriously gridlocked Los Angeles. What's the problem? JZ: There is debate about the TomTom data, but it's fair to say that Vancouver has a congestion problem, though it's a universal problem and not unique to Vancouver. WW So what's at the root of urban congestion, here or anywhere? JZ: It could be topography and geography — Vancouver, for example, has lots of bridges and is bounded by water. But the more important issue is land use, as it has a tremendous impact on congestion. And historically, cities have dealt with more cars by building more roads, which leads to urban sprawl and congestion — when the solution is higher-density land use. If you optimize the configuration of land use you reduce the level of congestion. WW Are you encouraged by the policies we see in Vancouver, in terms of land use or alternative modes of travel? JZ: I don't think we're moving boldly enough or fast enough. We need to invest more in public transit and we need to address vehicle use. But the question is how, and there is a lot of debate on that. Fuel surcharges, mileage-based taxes, carbon taxes, higher parking fees, peak-area congestion charges (like Stockholm has) — these are all options. But we need to balance efficiency with equity. WW What are the longer-term solutions to congestion? JZ: We are starting to reflect on that now. I'm a big promoter of sustainable travel, which includes public transit, cycling and walking. We are addressing the problem to some extent now, but the way to do that is still open to debate. • I.M. — Westworld >> S u m m e r 2 0 1 3 41 13-04-26 10:07 AM