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Some urban planning narratives suggest that downtown should be our only walkable neighbourhood. The one neighbourhood of exceptional vitality that everyone gravitates to for work, errands, gatherings and entertainment. After which, everyone returns to their quiet, family-friendly neighbourhoods.
...those that travel downtown are much less likely to use public transit if they are coming from car-focused and low-density suburbs.
This narrative alludes to what urban planning theory calls the monocentric city model. This idea identifies a city’s downtown core as the “nucleus” that contains the most activity, with enough gravitational pull to attract people from other neighbourhoods.
Despite decent public transit, car traffic towards our downtown core is significant enough to create high demand for parking and the occasional traffic jam, which reduces downtown’s overall walkability.
In principle, this model fares well if public transit is the main way to get around. Public transit thrives with lots of people using it at once, and lots of people residing or working along a specific transit line. A traditional downtown core can easily provide this, since it has a high concentration of activity that generates lots of travel demand.
But in this scenario, the transit users that travel downtown have to come from the less walkable neighbourhoods. And those that travel downtown are much less likely to use public transit if they are coming from car-focused and low-density suburbs.
What we have in Ottawa is pretty close to the monocentric model, but with a hybrid transportation network that leads us to and from downtown – mainly, cars and public transit. Despite decent public transit, car traffic towards our downtown core is significant enough to create high demand for parking and the occasional traffic jam, which reduces downtown’s overall walkability. Think of the space for extra roadway lanes which could otherwise be used to accommodate wider sidewalks with trees and benches. Or, the wide entrances to underground parkades that could otherwise make room for storefronts. These elements make a world of difference to someone’s walking experience.
If most Ottawa residents feel the need to hop into a vehicle, whether this be a car, bus or train, to get to a walkable neighbourhood, then we don’t live in a walkable city.
But apart from the impact that car traffic has on the vitality of a downtown core, we should also be asking ourselves why we’re constantly exiting our own neighbourhoods to run errands and seek entertainment.
Visiting another neighbourhood can be a refreshing experience. But in Ottawa there is a great disparity between the neighbourhoods which have unique amenities and experiences to offer to visitors, and the neighbourhoods that so many of these visitors are coming from, which often have very limited amenities and entertainment.
If most Ottawa residents feel the need to hop into a vehicle, whether this be a car, bus or train, to get to a walkable neighbourhood, then we don’t live in a walkable city. It also suggests that those of us who constantly exit our own neighbourhoods to run errands and find entertainment aren’t fully satisfied with what our own neighbourhoods have to offer.
Walkability only downtown is not enough. Ottawa will only experience the full benefits of walkability if we embrace it in most, if not all, of our neighbourhoods.
~ XAVIER BRADBURY-JOST is a regular blog contributor for Walkable Ottawa.
Have an idea for a blog? We’d love to hear from you! Drop us an email at: walkableottawainfo@gmail.com
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