Ecology Ottawa

News Clippings

#TransitChallenge2020 begins Monday in Ottawa

By 1310 News, February 17, 2020

The Transit Challenge is urging residents in Ottawa to only use buses, trains or ParaTranspo for a full week starting Monday February 17, except for emergencies.

People can still walk and bike to the transit stations. The challenge is run by Ottawa Transit Riders, a non-profit advocacy group that seeks to make transit in the capital more reliable, affordable and safe for users.

t is also co-hosted by Ecology Ottawa, Healthy Transportation Coalition and Free Transit Ottawa. Surveys will be sent out on Wednesday and Sunday to get the public's reaction on what worked and what didn't.

The challenge's purpose is to get a better understanding of Ottawa's transit system and see where there is room for improvement. It also aims to keep transit in the spotlight and maintain it as a priority issue at the municipal level.

OC Transpo brass sit out Transit Challenge as councillors climb aboard

By Ted Raymond, CTV News, February 17, 2020

OTTAWA -- Some of the top figures at OC Transpo have declined to take part in a week-long transit challenge, despite several city councillors agreeing to it.

The second annual transit challenge is being organized by Ottawa Transit Riders, Ecology Ottawa, Free Transit Ottawa, and the Healthy Transportation Coalition. The goal is to have councillors and other high-level transit officials agree to use public transit exclusively for one full week. That means participants will use the bus or the LRT for everything from commuting to and from work, to shopping, personal outings, or anything else outside of emergencies.

The challenge begins Monday, Feb. 17 and runs through Sunday, Feb. 23.

Ottawa's LRT

Related Stories

• Ottawa councillors share experiences as transit challenge comes to an end

15 of the 18 available councillors have agreed to take the challenge this year.

Renegade maples, unpopular poplars and other troublesome trees

By CBC News Ottawa, February 17, 2020

Ottawa has a vibrant urban canopy, but sometimes our trees don't act the way we expect them to.

"Trees aren't just pretty objects that we put up," said Joanna Dean, an environmental historian at Carleton University, ahead of a talk last week.

(...)The renegade maple

Dean told Ottawa Morning about three trees that have caused trouble, the first being the Manitoba maple.

(...)They would spring up all over the place, Dean said, and one of the locations they flourished was Parliament Hill. A study in the 1980s revealed that the Manitoba maple was crowding out all the other trees on the slopes behind Parliament.

"These were weed trees ... these were runaways, they were escapees," she said.

Though the tree is no longer banned, Dean said, it's certainly not one the city encourages planting.

(...)Centennial crabapples

Another tree that's been discouraged in the city is the ornamental crabapple tree.

It was popular in the 1960s, said Dean, when Canada's Centennial Commission wanted the bright pink trees everywhere.

The city even gave 1,800 free trees to residents to plant on their property, and the National Capital Commission planted them alongside roads.

"But they turned out to be a problematic tree," Dean said. "In the fall, we have nothing but crabapples underfoot — and [that brings] wasps."

(...)An unpopular poplar

A third tree that caused tensions in the city is the Lombardy poplar.

It was brought over from Italy, and given its thick canopy, it was used to line Central Park in the Glebe.

"They made a lovely cloistered park," Dean said. "You couldn't see any of the houses. It felt like you were out of the city."

But if you lived next to the park, the trees also hid your entire view.

(...)A 'vibrant urban forest'

Looking at the history of Ottawa's troublesome trees has implications, Dean said, for how we currently think about our urban canopy.

She said it's important that we learn to live alongside trees, and also understand legitimate concerns that people have about some of them.

A lot of trees get removed, she said, because they're in someone's way.

"Until we realize how to work better with trees," Dean said, "we're not going to be very successful in creating a strong and vibrant urban forest."

Pellerin: On climate change – or any other issue – let's listen to all generations

By Brigitte Pellerin, Ottawa Citizen, February 13, 2020

Everything old is new again, as someone said somewhere, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t listen to our kids. Especially when they’re eager to have a conversation with us.

I was reminded of this by Steven Mnuchin, the U.S. treasury secretary, who recently mocked the teen climate activist Greta Thunberg in Davos, saying maybe once she’s studied economics in college she could be allowed to discuss divestment from fossil fuel companies.

Oh, you mean a BA in economics from Yale like Mnuchin happens to have? And maybe a job at Goldman Sachs, too? Should Thunberg also be middle-aged and worth a couple of hundred millions before he’ll deign to acknowledge her right to say something?

Today's letters: There are better ways to recruit women into the military, Canada

By Andrew Hartshorn, Ottawa Citizen Letter to the Editor, February 15, 2020

(...)Light-rail mistakes we should not have made

Re: Trillium Line dispute prompts call to look at the city’s policies, Feb. 12.

Like the mayor and council and his transportation managers, I have no idea or experience in purchasing and installing a light-rail system. But I think I would have looked at all the successfully operating systems around the world before choosing one, avoiding any new, untested systems and trains.

And I would not employ a company to manufacture or install the system if it had a background of patronage and corruption.  I would not have built three short spurs of rail going from nowhere to nowhere, but would have built one complete run end-to-end.  I would not change a reasonable bus system until the train system had run completely trouble-free for at least several months. And finally, I would not blame the passengers for the shortcomings of a system I had purchased and installed.

'A lot of frustrations': Montreal is hoping to avoid Ottawa's LRT mess

By Jason Magder, Ottawa Citizen, February 15, 2020

Could Ottawa’s experience with light rail transit be a sign of things to come for Montreal?

The nation’s capital inaugurated its new $2.1-billion Confederation Line in September, but since its initial launch, the light-rail system has been beset with problems. Electrical issues, malfunctioning doors and faulty switching technology on the tracks are among the problems.

The city has pinned some of the blame for the problems on the private partners chosen to build and operate the train line, as part of a public-private partnership. That should be a concern to Montrealers, because many of the builders and operators of Ottawa’s trains are the same ones chosen to build and operate the Réseau express métropolitain — a $6.3-billion automated electric light rail project planned to begin operation in the region in phases between 2021 and 2023.

'My only motivation is to improve public transit': Open, forceful citizen transit commissioner raises stink at city hall

By Andrew Duffy, Ottawa Citizen, February 15, 2020

It’s early Friday afternoon on a cold day in February and, once again, Sarah Wright-Gilbert’s phone is blowing up.

One year into her volunteer role as a citizen transit commissioner, the 38-year-old has made herself an essential source of news and information about the city’s fickle light rail system.

Today, the Confederation Line is having trouble navigating the winter weather: two trains have had to be towed. The episode follows a morning power outage that delayed some trains, and still more “switch issues.”

Wright-Gilbert has taken to her preferred medium, Twitter, to update commuters on the unfolding situation and to express her dissatisfaction with the status quo.

Environment committee praises Foodsmiths, Perth, on green initiatives

By InsideOttawaValley, February 10, 2020 We are writing to bring public attention to Foodsmiths’ recent decision to discontinue the provision of plastic shopping bags to its customers. This proactive action supports all our efforts to use less and less plastic. This comes at a time when the Canadian federal government is moving toward legislation, in 2021, to ban single-use plastics following the release of a comprehensive Environment Ministry report outlining the harmful impacts of plastics on our planet.

At the same time, we also notice that Foodsmiths has increased offerings of alternatives to plastic use, with items such as glass jars and cloth-based produce bags that can be reused.

Conservation group buys swath of Outaouais land to protect turtles

By Joseph Tunney, CBC News Ottawa, February 16, 2020

They might not know it, but a group of endangered turtles in the Outaouais has a reason to celebrate.

On Saturday, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) announced it had purchased 31 hectares of land near Bristol, Que., in the hopes of protecting the habitat of Blanding's turtles, a species considered threatened by the Quebec government and endangered by the federal government.

• Turtle lovers hatch plan to protect roadside nests

• Endangered turtles saved by citizens of Ontario hamlet

"It means the land will not be developed. We will not be seeing housing, cabins or any new trails added to the land. Not anytime soon," said Caroline Gagné, the group's program director for western Quebec.

ANALYSIS: If tax hauls matter, a downtown politician might deserve a 'cabinet' seat

By Jon Willing, Ottawa Citizen, February 15, 2020

City council’s most influential committee might be short-changing the downtown wards if tax revenue by district matters when it comes to representation.

The makeup of the finance and economic development committee received attention this past week as council was presented with an opportunity to make a change.

Downtown councillors pointed out that none of them sat on the top leadership committee and they advocated for Kitchissippi Coun. Jeff Leiper to take over chairing the transportation committee and to take a seat on the finance committee.

Council refused with a 15-7 vote, instead promoting Beacon Hill-Cyrville Coun. Tim Tierney to transportation chair.

Discussion forum on waste management Feb. 25 in Oxford Mills

By InsideOttawaValley, February 14, 2020 North Grenville council is hosting a discussion forum on what the future of waste management in North Grenville should look like. The forum will be held on Feb. 25 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Maplewood Hall in Oxford Mills (92 Maplewood Ave.)

“The timing of this discussion forum aligns with North Grenville’s next five-year waste management contract. As such, residents and business leaders are encouraged to weigh in regarding their needs and perspectives,” said Mayor Nancy Peckford.

The municipality is examining many options including, leaf and yard waste pickup, bulky item pickup, and bi-weekly garbage and organic pickup.

Gower: Fixing transit in Ottawa – It starts with governance

By Glen Gower, Ottawa Citizen, February 13, 2020

Wednesday’s unanimous vote at Ottawa Council on the review of light-rail transit procurement showed our ability to work together in a constructive way. I hope it marks a shift for council away from the more divisive approach we’ve seen until now on this file.

Just last month, the city’s Transit Commission met for another marathon meeting to receive an operational update on the Confederation Line. Commissioners took turns grilling OC Transpo and the Rideau Transit Group’s senior leadership on the nuts and bolts of transit vehicles and the procurement process put in place by previous councils. The next morning, nobody arrived at work a minute earlier.

(...)To steer a ship this big, councillors and commissioners need a clear vision of Ottawa’s transit needs; a vision that goes beyond ward boundaries and political agendas. Without that big picture, communicating goals and intentions starts looking like a telephone game. This clarity is of immense significance in the context of a large Public Private Partnership (P3).

In this P3 environment, the community’s wishes are expressed first in council directives to staff, which then trickle down to RTM, the private company that is responsible for maintenance and operation of the trains. Council is focused primarily on the public interest; RTM is focused on meeting shareholder goals. Clarity in how we communicate our goals and intentions is the only way that we can align these two interests.