Help the Coalition Stop the Senseless Widening of the
Queensway
Here's what you can do. The first item below is the most important. The others would be nice but are not essential:
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Support the bump-up request that has already been submitted by writing the provincial Minister of the Environment:
The Honourable John Gerretsen
135 St. Clair Ave W, 15th Flr
Toronto ON M4V 1P5
E-mail: jgerretsen.mpp@liberal.ola.org
Tel: 416-314-6790
Let the minister know you agree the bump-up submitted by the City Centre Coalition, Transport 2000 and Ottawa Group of the Sierra Club of Canada.
- Talk to people
The purpose is to make them aware of the consequences of Queensway expansion. Some people in outlying areas may be in favour of expanding the Queensway in the core because they hope it will reduce congestion. Here are some points worth raising:
- Congestion will not be reduced in lasting manner.
- Widening the Queensway will not increase capacity on downtown streets.
- The traffic forecasting done to look at road options underestimates induced traffic which results from road expansion projects. Ignoring induced traffic leads to over estimating road benefits (congestion reduction) and underestimating road consequences (pollution).
- Widening the Queensway will be very expensive (well over $ 100 million). The same tax dollars could move more people and reduce air pollution by being spent on an east-west light rail. A single track of light rail can carry the equivalent of 7 lanes of highway. By comparison this Queensway widening will only add 1 lane in each direction from Island Park west and 1 lane in each direction from Metcalfe east, which isn't very much for the expense.
- On the question of safety, accidents on the Queensway are most severe (i.e. personal injury or death) outside the core where it is wider and faster.
- Transit, walking and cycling are complementary to each other. The Queensway expansion proposals do not contribute to any of these alternative modes of travel.
- The concept that air quality will somehow better with a widened Queensway is pure science fiction. If this were possible the cities with the most roads would have the better air but they don't.
Your name and e-mail address will be kept private and will only be used by the coalition to notify you of any upcoming events relating to the Queensway study. If you wish to only give your support but do not want to receive e-mail notification just let us know in your e-mail. If you'd like to volunteer with other types of help, just let us know in your e-mail.
The Coalition Against Queensway Widening is a group of community associations and individuals who joined together to fight for Smart Growth alternatives, such as rapid transit, cycling and walking, instead of highway expansion through the heart of Ottawa.
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The
Coalition kicked off with a press conference
in January 2003.
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The following community groups are part of the coalition:
- Action Sandy Hill,
- Citizens for Healthy Communities - promoting healthy alternatives for the Alta Vista Corridor,
- City Centre Coalition - Umbrella group of downtown community associations,
- Glebe Community Association,
- Heron Park Community Association,
- Old Ottawa South Community Association,
- Ottawa East Community Association.
In addition, over 200 individuals have signed on or e-mailed their support and we are still growing.
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Along
with the Sierra Club we were also part of a Smog
Breakfast in June 2003.
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In July
2005, we gathered for a Parks over
Pavement: Trees and Smog Coffee Break to highlight the nonsense
of promising cleaner air by building more roads. We also used the
opportunity to plant another tree near the Queensway.
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Updated December 20, 2007
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