Ask Victoria Council to Approve BTA’s Transit & Climate Motion!
At the request of the Better Transit Alliance, Victoria City Councillors Jeremy Loveday and Ben Isitt have crafted a motion based on the BTA’s open letter on climate-friendly transportation investments! The motion is titled “Advocacy to Shift Investment to Low-Emission Transportation.” The motion reads:
“That Council requests the Mayor write, on behalf of Council, to the Prime Minister of Canada and Premier of British Columbia, copying the federal and provincial ministers responsible for climate action, infrastructure and transportation, requesting that they fully implement their commitment in the Pan-Canadian Framework on Clean Growth and Climate Change in transportation sector, to shift investments “from higher to lower-emitting types of transportation” within the Capital Regional District.
The full motion is available here. Getting this motion passed will be a crucial step in getting much more funding for transit in Greater Victoria. Please write to mayorandcouncil@victoria.ca urging the mayor and all councillors to vote in favor of this crucial motion! (You don’t have to be a resident of Victoria to urge Council to take leadership in the region & country.)
The motion will be discussed on Thursday Dec 7 at the Committee of the Whole meeting starting at 9 am, please try to get your comments in before then. We expect the vote to approve the motion will be at the Council Meeting on Thursday December 14 starting at 6:30 pm, BTA members have registered to speak and we would love to see you there!
Write a letter to the editor today!
Better Transit Alliance members have been keeping transit in the news, largely by writing letters to the editor. Check out these letters and news articles for inspiration, and take a few minutes to write your own letter to the editor of the TC or your local paper.
Douglas Street / Hwy 1 Bus Lane update
The Better Transit Alliance is still working to pressure decision-makers to move forward with their promise to install 24/7 bus lanes on Douglas Street & Highway 1. The bus lanes could be completed all the way to the 6-Mile Pub within 24 months for a very reasonable cost, once a provincial government decides to get it done.
The Provincial government and City of Victoria have reopened bidding on construction contracts to lengthen the priority bus lanes on Douglas Street and a short section of Highway 1. However, it is not clear if there is enough money set aside to get the work done, so this essential project could be delayed yet again. The good news is that, apparently in response to pressure from the Better Transit Alliance, the Chair of the Transit Commission has promised to hold an emergency meeting if the bids come in over budget. BC Transit has also updated their website on the project.
Pressure is needed at the provincial, regional, and municipal level to ensure this crucial project is not delayed again, and the easy next steps are completed quickly.
Have you ever attended a Transit Commission Meeting?
The next Victoria Transit Commission Meetings are open to the public and the next one is 9am Tuesday Dec 12, in the BC Transit Board Room, 520 Gorge Road East, Victoria, BC. The BTA will be there to speak about completing the Douglas / Hwy 1 bus lanes. Meetings are open to the public, but speakers have to register well in advance.