Victoria, BC– Salt Spring Islanders can get involved with active travel planning by helping to identify active transportation network gaps and priorities for the future of active transportation on the island. Islanders are encouraged to visit getinvolved.crd.bc.ca/ssi-active-transportation-network to complete the survey and provide input through the interactive map. The survey will be open until 11:59 pm on October 24, 2022.

The Capital Regional District (CRD) is undertaking an island-wide planning process to create a new Active Transportation Network Plan (ATNP) for Salt Spring Island (SSI), which will have a strong focus on walkability in Ganges Village and active transportation connectivity across the island. This work supports developing active transportation options to improve safety, accessibility, and convenience for all ages and abilities. The online engagement follows a community consultation held in August at an Ideas Fair during Salt Spring Island’s Saturday Market.

Community input is a vital part of planning to help understand the current active transportation network, conditions, and gaps. Information provided during the process will inform a list of actions, recommendations, and top priorities. A second survey will be available later this fall, where Salt Spring Islanders will be asked to provide feedback on the draft actions, recommendations, and top priorities.

Highlights:

• Active transportation refers to human-powered forms of travel, including walking and wheeling (bike, scooter, rollerblades, skateboard, wheelchair) fully or part-way to and from a destination and bus stop.
• The plan will be developed to address critical active transportation issues and help SSI manage transportation and demographic changes while improving the quality of life, safety, and mobility for residents and visitors.
• The benefits of active transportation are plentiful, including providing more choices for getting around, supporting active lifestyles and healthy people, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Other co-benefits include vibrant streets and public life, lower personal transportation costs, and economic vitality for local businesses that benefit from foot traffic.

The BC Government supports the development of the ATNP through the BC Active Transportation Network Planning Grant. Network planning grants help smaller communities develop active transportation network plans to encourage active transportation for all ages and abilities. Active transportation plans generally must be in place and approved to qualify for federal and provincial grants. When complete, the ATNP will identify a small number of priority projects which will inform the budget and planning work for funding applications. The ATNP will build upon the 2013 SSI Pedestrian and Cycling Master Plan and will be informed by learnings from the Ganges Village Area Plan process.

Proud to be recognized as one of BC’s Top Employers and Canada’s Greenest Employers, the CRD delivers regional, sub-regional and local services to 13 municipalities and three electoral areas on southern Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. Governed by a 24-member Board of Directors, the CRD works collaboratively with First Nations and all levels of government to enable sustainable growth, foster community well-being, and develop cost-effective infrastructure while continuing to provide core services to residents throughout the region. Visit us online at www.crd.bc.ca.

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For media inquiries, please contact:
Andy Orr, Senior Manager
CRD Corporate Communications
Tel: 250.360.3229
Cell: 250.216.5492