Practices and Inspiration for
Sustainable Transportation Equity
The big question facing the transportation community is no longer whether to take action towards transportation equity, but how.
Nearly 1 million Canadians live in transport poverty, where their ability to access opportunities is limited by inadequate, unsafe, or unaffordable transportation options. City builders are recognizing that the way transportation has been planned, designed, and delivered is unfair and needs to change. At the same time, governments are increasing their investments in sustainable transportation infrastructure—and putting equity on their policy agendas. These windows are opportunities to level inequities and build transportation systems that work for everyone, but transportation practitioners need more guidance on how to action equity commitments on the ground.
How can we move transportation equity from rhetoric to reality?
INTERACT and LevelUp Planning teamed up to assemble practical guidance and inspiration on how equity can be meaningfully embedded in sustainable transportation interventions. We examined the state of equity policies in Canadian and international cities, captured promising practices from jurisdictions making notable progress in their journey towards sustainable transportation equity, and convened the transportation community to learn from and build on these strategies.
This report shares key findings from our process, including:
- Key elements that define transportation equity, and resources for learning more
- Considerations for the development of municipal equity policies in Canada
- Lessons learned from the transportation equity journeys of three Canadian cities – New Westminster, Edmonton, and Ottawa
- 15 promising practices for embedding equity in sustainable transportation interventions
Project Roadmap
Activities
CIP Webinar: Equity in Motion
Join researcher Meghan Winters and city builders Lisa Leblanc (City of New Westminster), Deborah Lightman RPP (City of Ottawa), and Christian Lee (City of Edmonton) as they explore the findings from INTERACT’s new report.
NCCEH Webinar: Practices and Inspiration for Sustainable Transportation Equity
Healthy Built Environment Forum
Victoria Barr from LevelUp Planning and Laura Chow from Vancouver Coastal Health joined Meghan Winters to discuss the pivotal role of public health practitioners in moving equity from rhetoric to reality.
How can cities move transportation equity from rhetoric to reality?
CityTalk Live
A panel of city builders from Edmonton, New Westminster, and Ottawa shared insights on the successes and struggles with realizing transportation equity in Canadian cities.
From rhetoric to reality: Promising practices for advancing transportation equity in Canadian cities.
Workshop at the ITE Canada/CARSP 2023 Joint Conference
Winnipeg
Transportation professionals and researchers from across Canada joined to learn from cities who are moving transportation equity from rhetoric to reality. We shared highlights from the workshop in ITE Canada’s Transportation Talks Summer 2023.
De la rhétorique à la réalité : pratiques pour faire avancer l’équité en matière de transport
Article in Association québécoise du transport’s publication Routes et transports
We shared key learnings for transportation equity in practice with practitioners in Québec.
The road to transportation equity: Early findings from municipal policies and actions
CARSP Webinar Series
April 19, 2023
We shared early findings from our scan of equity policies in Canada, and key insights from transportation professionals who are actively integrating equity into their planning and practice, including applications to road safety.
Municipal equity policies: takeaways for planners
Canadian municipalities are creating policies to guide their approach to equity, both internally within governments and externally within their communities. Planners possess the power and responsibility to contribute to municipal equity efforts. However, this is a new area for many planners, and there are different ways to approach equity work. Read about early findings from our scan of equity policies in Canadian communities, and takeaways for planning practice in Plan Canada.
Case study selection
In December 2022, we convened the INTERACT Knowledge Hub to hear findings from our policy scan and deliberate on the selection of case study cities that stand out for their approach to equity, from both a policy and transportation planning standpoint. Three Canadian cities were selected for in-depth case studies (New Westminster, Edmonton, and Ottawa), in addition to spotlights on specific local and international initiatives in Toronto, County of Kings, Seattle, Washington DC, and Oakland. Learn more about the data and process that informed our selection.
Project team
The PISTE project is a collaboration of INTERACT and LevelUp Planning Collaborative, and supported by funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and Mitacs.
RESEARCHERS
Meghan Winters, PhD
Principal Investigator, Simon Fraser University
Tessa Williams, MSc(c), RPP
Research lead + Mitacs Intern, Simon Fraser University
Meridith Sones, MPH, PhD(c)
Co-investigator + INTERACT Knowledge Mobilization Manager, Simon Fraser University
Victoria Barr, PhD
Consultant + Mitacs Partner, LevelUp Planning Collaborative
Zoé Poirier Stephens, MUP
INTERACT Research Manager, Université de Montréal
Jaimy Fischer, PhD
Co-investigator, Simon Fraser University
Daniel Fuller, PhD
Co-investigator, University of Saskatchewan
Yan Kestens, PhD
Co-investigator, Centre de recherche en santé publique, Université de Montréal
Kevin Manaugh, PhD
Co-investigator, McGill University
CITY BUILDERS
Sarah Webb
Assistant Director, Corporate Planning & Strategic Project Support, City of Victoria
Mike Van der Laan
Transportation Planner, City of Victoria
Sherwood Plant
Transportation Engineer, City of Vancouver
Bartek Komorowski
Conseiller en aménagement – Chef d’équipe, City of Montreal
Chris Schulz
Planning Project Services Manager, City of Saskatoon
Rob Dudiak
Special Project Manager (BRT), City of Saskatoon
Gregory Spencer
Director of Research, Canadian Urban Institute
