Mobility

Goal

Inspire and influence the evolution of integrated urban mobility that is efficient, affordable, and accessible.

Why it matters

A convergence of pressures is changing transportation needs across Canada: the cost of owning and driving a car or truck continues to increase; health researchers continue to make the connection between disease, inactivity, and driving; natural systems are buckling under the pressure of GHGs and pollution; and there is an aging population who rely on automobiles, but who soon will be unable to drive. People are looking for cheaper, healthier, and smarter ways of getting around.

The choices people make are changing; for the first time in a century, fewer young people are choosing to drive. People are making new and different transportation choices. There has also been an evolution in thought about what transportation means. It no longer makes sense to plan just for automobiles or just for cyclists. Everybody, at some point in their lives, is a pedestrian, a transit rider, a passenger in a car.

Mobility describes the process of getting from point 'A' to point 'B'. It includes transit, walking, driving, cycling, and assistive devices, e.g., wheelchairs. Mobility planning takes into consideration all of these modes of travel and gives them equal weight when planning roads and developments. The aim is to create a seamless integration and transition so that all people, regardless of age, gender, ability, or wealth, can efficiently, safely, and enjoyably travel as needed.

Objectives

Use public and private infrastructure to create seamless, barrier-free options for bicycling, walking, and transit use in order to create a cleaner, greener, more beautiful Thunder Bay.
Citizens of all ages and abilities are inspired to adopt more active modes of transportation, leading to a higher quality of life.
Introduce policies which support sustainable modes of transportation.
Partners from all sectors support multi-modal transportation in order to create a prosperous and more diversified economy.