[I’m making an appearance before the Transportation Advisory Committee on Tuesday. This is a draft that I’m currently working on. It’ll be updated throughout the weekend, and you’re welcome to comment or email me if there’s anything that you’d like me to consider.]
Chair and Members, Transportation Advisory Committee
June 3, 2008
All over the world, there is a growing “trend toward more walkable and less car-reliant communities [and] In the past few years, a growing number of cities…have adopted blueprints for how best to encourage and protect pedestrians.” 01
“Toronto made history by being the first city in North America to adopt a Pedestrian Charter that clearly endorses the rights of pedestrians to use the streets and that guides how the City should create a walkable city.” 02
Driving, bicycling, public transit… these are all government-bestowed privileges. But walking is a natural right, just like eating and sleeping and breathing. Unfortunately, in today’s car culture, too many people have lost sight of that fact.
London has a Transportation Master Plan which refers to walking as one of the preferred transportation modes, but doesn’t go much further than that. Toronto’s Pedestrian Charter endorses the rights of pedestrians to use the streets…” Isn’t that a logical first step?
Canada’s largest city is now “embarked on the development of a Pedestrian Plan, to be completed by 2008.” 02 In doing so, it joins a long list of North American cities that are either engaged in that same process, or have already reached that goal.
Some of the things that a London Pedestrian Master Plan might resolve to do:
- Improve safety at signalized crossings and intersections
- Improve safety at uncontrolled crossings and intersections (those without stop signs or traffic signals)
- Reduce crossing distances at intersections.
- Increase penalties for drivers who threaten pedestrian safety.
If London truly aspires to be a ‘walkable city,’ then it ought to follow in the footsteps of those other progressive jurisdictions which are already embarked upon that path, by developing it’s own Pedestrian Charter and Pedestrian Master Plan. And what better way to do that, than by creating a Pedestrian Advisory Committee?
Respectfully,
Mr. Gregory Fowler
962 Eagle Crescent
London , Ontario ; N5Z 3H7
519-649-0500 (h)
519-719-4615 (c)
fowgreATyahooDOTca
https://frommybottomstep.wordpress.com
Appendix ‘A’: Document Sources
01. 2008/02/05 – Washington Post: Why don’t you walk more?
02. TCAT: Lead
Appendix ‘B’: Pedestrian Plans
Canada; Kamloops
Canada; Coldstream
Canada; Edmonton
Canada; Markham
Canada; Ottawa
Canada; Toronto
Canada; Vaughan
Canada; Victoria
Canada; York Region
USA; Alameda County
USA; Albany
USA; Anne Arundel County
USA; Berkeley
USA; Charlotte
USA; Denver
USA; District of Columbia
USA; Fremont
USA; Minneapolis
USA; Oakland
USA; Portland
USA; Sacramento
USA; San Francisco
USA; Santa Barbara
USA; Santa Cruz
USA; Santa Rosa
USA; San Francisco
USA; Seattle
2008/05/22 – Carectomy: D.C. Unveils “Master Plan” For Pedestrians
Tags: city, London, municipal, Ontario, pedestrian, plan, policy, safe, urban, walk
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