Car really is king in West Kelowna

When West Kelowna residents get behind the wheel, more often than not they’re leaving town.

Fifty-seven per cent of all trips made by Westsiders are to destinations outside the municipality, according to information presented to city council Tuesday night.

The tidbit about travel habits was included in a report on a new transportation management plan being devised for the Central Okanagan.

Among other things, the plan calls for greater co-operation between municipalities, favouring new development along transit routes and building more multi-purpose pathways.

The Central Okanagan is said to be one of the most car-dependent regions in Canada, according to Rafael Villareal, a City of Kelowna planner.

Currently, more than 82 per cent of all trips made in the Central Okanagan are in private vehicles, with less than five per cent of all trips made on public transit and seven per cent of all trips accomplished by walking.

Many Westsiders work and shop in Kelowna, a fact that explains why 57 per cent of all trips are to destinations outside West Kelowna.

Getting more people out of their private vehicles could prove particularly challenging in West Kelowna given results of a recent citizen survey conducted by the municipality.

Last year, 85 per cent of West Kelowna residents said they never take the bus. And half said they never would, regardless of how much additional investment was made in the public transit system.

Ridership on most West Kelowna bus routes is below provincially set targets, with passenger fares accounting for 15 per cent or less of operating expenses on six of the eight routes.

BC Transit is proposing to eliminate two particularly low-performing Westside routes, the No. 27 Horizon and No. 29 Bear Creek, but a final decision hasn’t yet been made.