Canada’s transit systems lag behind Europe: report
North America’s cities at bottom of world ranking
Canada’s largest cities are lagging behind urban centres around the world when it comes to offering sustainable transportation, according to a new report released Sunday.
North American cities overall ranked lower on the Sustainable Cities Mobility Index, a new report that looked at 100 cities, published by Arcadis, a global design and consultancy firm, in partnership with the London-based Centre for Economic and Business Research.
Vancouver had the highest ranking among Canadian cities, coming in at No. 3 among North American urban centres for overall sustainability of its urban transit system, but dropped to No. 28 when compared with cities globally. Montreal ranked No. 4 in North America and No. 36 in the world. Toronto performed the worst among the three Canadian cities studied, coming in at No. 9 in North America and No. 54 in the world.
The report looked at a wide range of factors to determine the sustainability of transport systems, including affordability of public transit, commute time, accessibility to multiple modes of transit, bicycle infrastructure, and pollution.
“The bottom-line conclusion that we came up with in terms of why North American cities landed where they did is that most of our cities are still very much car centric and focused on car transportation,” said Thomas Franz, president of Arcadis Canada. “In Europe and other parts of the world, there’s less of a reliance on cars and they are probably a bit more embracing of public transportation ...”
While Franz points to many positive aspects of North American transit systems — for example, Vancouver’s bike infrastructure and general walkability or Toronto’s relatively new UP Express train connecting downtown to the airport — he says there are many aspects that still can be improved.
“We often have issues with congestion, air pollution, average commuting time and the number of bus and metro stops per square kilometre,” Franz said. “These are some of the things that drive the North American city’s (ranking) lower, as well as the fact that North American cities tend (to be less affordable).”
The most sustainable transportation system in the world is in Hong Kong, the report found, thanks largely to its expansive metro system and frequent usage of public transport.
European cities dominated the Top 10 rankings with seven cities, including Zurich, Paris and Prague. According to the report, in Europe “many cities have invested generously in transport infrastructure and have widely utilized public transport systems, helping to cut commuting times.”
New York City ranked No. 1 among 23 North American cities, but came in at No. 23 globally.