Waterville launches sustainable mobility survey

Waterville’s city council and environment committee launched a sustainable mobility survey Monday in hopes of identifying the transportation needs of its residents.

The committee plans to study the results of the survey, analyzing the habits of citizens and workers in the area. The end goal is to create and implement a sustainable mobility pilot project. Waterville teamed up with the Centre de mobilité durable de Sherbrooke (CMDS).

The city needs to do its due diligence before developing a new mobility project, Louis-andré Neault, a CMDS coordinator, explained in a press release. He added that the survey can be found on the city’s official website.

“It is thanks to this information that it is possible to identify sustainable mobility solutions specific to the reality of Waterville and to initiate long-term behavioural changes,” said Neault.

Waterville residents are becoming more environmentally conscious, according to Mayor Nathalie Dupuis, and the city needs to acknowledge that. Residents have already expressed a need to bolster infrastructure to encourage walking and cycling in the city.

There is also a push for more carpooling options, Dupuis said, which is considered alternative transportation. There are a lot of people who travel to Waterville by car, she continued, and they have shown a willingness to experiment with carpooling.

“We hope that the combination of these two realities will be the strength of our approach and that the survey will reveal possible solutions that will be beneficial for our community,” Dupuis said.

Businesses in the area, including Waterville TG, the PPD Group, and Waterville Woodworking, which together employ roughly 1,000 people, have shown a keen interest in alternative transportation. The Coaticook MRC is also taking part in the project.