Choosing Our Future
A coalition with a vision to dynamically transform the way Vancouver Islanders live, work and play in their communities. We envision Vancouver Island being a safe, progressive, environmentally sensitive, energy self sufficient and life‐sustaining place for all its inhabitants.
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Membership
If you would like to support our objectives, please apply for membership here.
Current Polls
Knowledge of ITO Rapid Transit Proposal for Victoria CRD
Additional Polls and Surveys
2010 Transit Alternatives Survey for Victoria CRD (click title for a printable form to mail in)
sponsored by: IslandTransformations.org and Greater Victoria Light Rail Society
All who have browsed the links and articles on the Island Transformations Home page should now appreciate that our Vancouver Island needs traffic systems that provide more reliable means of integrating communities without the use of single occupant vehicles, especially those that rely on fossil fuels for power;
And, you will have seen the importance of those transit systems and daily efforts to reduce our use of non-renewable energy to limit contamination of our environment with GHG (mostly CO2) emissions; e.g. Did you know that the emissions of an average gasoline powered passenger car are: 5.46 metric tons CO2E /vehicle/year? Hydro Que translates that as 214 grams CO2E per km when carrying just one person!
Therefore, even the least GHG efficient public transit vehicle may take a driver off the road some of the time; however, the most efficient and comfortable vehicle will prompt many more drivers to use public transit; so, given the following vehicle characteristics (note GHG counts exclude vehicle manufacturing and infrastructure emissions):
Diesel Bus, max capacity 60, capital cost $700k*, life cycle 15 years, noisy, GHG 32 gms per passenger/km;
Electric trolley bus, max capacity 60, capital cost $900k*, life cycle 25 years, quiet tires, GHG nil;
Electric Sreetcar, max capacity 180, capital cost $3.5m, life cycle 40 years, quiet rail, GHG nil;
* remember that either bus option means 3 buses are needed to carry the same load as one streetcar and will need to be replaced mid-way through the life cycle of one streetcar; in addition, buses will require more manpower to drive and maintain.
We have the following questions to pose and would sincerely wish to hear of your views and constructive solutions to the livability objectives of the CRD and, indeed, all of Vancouver Island!
Transit Vehicle Survey 2011
Survey results (as of 1 May 2010)
Of 801 survey forms returned -
- 570 gave rail transit as first choice
- 185 stayed with a clean form of transit by giving a first choice of electric trolley buses
- 46 opted for our current type of bus service.
Now, we would appreciate your completion of our 2012 study of CRD transit preferences. Click Here
