It’s easy to get along without a vehicle

Re: “Saanich parking plans will cause problems,” letter, March 30.

The letter suggested Saanich will be less family friendly if it eliminates parking minimums, but we are living that reality and loving it.

We are a family of four who live carfree in Saanich. There are many other families like ours.

Our home has 1,300 square feet of main-floor living space, with a similar amount of not-quite-finished basement, and unused parking spaces for eight vehicles (1,440 square feet).

Councillor Zac de Vries said “we’re in a housing crisis, not a parking crisis,” and from our perspective this is certainly true.

We have no trouble biking or walking to work, school, and activities (right now that’s dance and swimming), getting groceries, visiting friends and doing the normal things that families do together.

We cycle in all weather, and are grateful for the recent additions of protected bike lanes in our neighbourhood and across the city that allow us to travel safely while getting a little exercise and leaving no pollution behind in the atmosphere.

Let’s not let a lack of imagination prevent us from designing for the future. Requiring abundant free parking by municipal decree has been a disaster that we should be grateful to leave behind in the 20th century.

The market should decide how much parking should be built — not municipal bylaws.

Organizations like the Parking Reform Network are doing great work educating the public about the over-abundance of parking in our society, and their work should be required reading for all citizens.

Ben Cowie Saanich