Our current transportation system is not on a sustainable path. Our admirable achievements in terms of mobility have come at some considerable environmental as well as social and economic cost. The challenge now is to find ways of meeting our transportation needs that are environmentally sound, socially equitable and economically viable.

Humans are inherently mobile, and in most societies, mobility is both highly valued personally and essential for social and economic reasons. Over time, however, as population has increased, cities have grown, and globalization and free trade have increased the regional and international movement of people and goods, our transportation infrastructure and systems have expanded dramatically. The cars, trucks, buses, subways, trains, airplanes, ships and ferries that we use to move ourselves and our goods today have significant environmental implications in terms of inputs, emissions, and land use.

In many countries, transportation infrastructure is increasingly devoted to automobiles. This increased use of the private automobile is a major contributor to air quality problems and global climate change. While emission rates on a per mile driven basis have been substantially reduced in the last two decades, the enormous increase in vehicle use has offset these gains.

In addition, while the emphasis on roadways for cars has increased mobility and independence for many, it has had a negative impact on the quality of life of others. Those far less able to access automobiles (the poor, the disabled, women, the elderly etc.) have fewer transportation options. Road infrastructure has tended to make more sustainable options such as walking and bicycling more difficult to use, and it often detracts from the aesthetic appeal of our urban and rural environments, and consumes land that is extremely valuable for other uses (for example agriculture). In many urban centres, however, transit infrastructure has not had the capital funding necessary to provide commuters with a suitable alternative to the use of the automobile.

The health and safety of people have also been threatened by air quality problems and traffic accidents associated with increased car and truck use. In larger urban centres, traffic congestion causes losses in productivity, quality of life and health (increased stress).

While the transportation sector is an important economic sector, contributing both directly and indirectly to jobs and export earnings, the costs of maintaining and updating transportation infrastructure and services continue to rise, and many governments can no longer afford to support this kind and pace of infrastructure development.

Our aim is to develop transportation systems that maintain or improve human and ecosystem well-being together - not one at the expense of the other. Due to varying environmental, social and economic conditions between and within countries, there is no single best way to achieve sustainable transportation systems. A set of guiding principles can be described, however, upon which transition strategies should be built.

We recognize the fundamental importance of,

ACCESS:

Access to people, places, goods and services is important to the social and economic well being of communities. Transportation is a key means, but not the only means, through which access can be achieved.

Principle #1: Access

People are entitled to reasonable access to other people, places, goods and services.

PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES:

Transportation systems are a critical element of a strong economy, but can also contribute directly to building community and enhancing quality of life.

Principle #2: Equity

Nation states and the transportation community must strive to ensure social, interregional and inter-generational equity, meeting the basic transportation-related needs of all people including women, the poor, the rural, and the disabled.

Principle #3: Health and Safety

Transportation systems should be designed and operated in a way that protects the health (physical, mental and social well-being) and safety of all people, and enhances the quality of life in communities.

Principle #4: Individual Responsibility

All individuals have a responsibility to act as stewards of the natural environment, undertaking to make sustainable choices with regard to personal movement and consumption.

Principle #5: Integrated Planning

Transportation decision makers have a responsibility to pursue more integrated approaches to planning.

A number of strategic directions are proposed for moving toward sustainability in transportation. Many of these strategic actions respond to more than one of the guiding principles outlined above.

ACCESS:

• Demand Management
  • Reduce the need for travel while protecting social and economic needs for access by changing urban form, promoting new communications technologies, and developing more efficient packaging etc.

• Diversifying Options
  • Improve access by diversifying transportation options, giving people more choices as to how they meet their access needs.

PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES

• Urban Planning and Transportation Planning
  • Concentrate urban growth, limit sprawl and provide for more mixed land use through urban structure and land use policies. This would reduce demand (especially for automobile trips) by moving origins and destinations closer together and also help reduce habitat destruction and loss of agricultural and recreational lands.

  • Give priority to less polluting, lower impact modes of transportation in the design of transportation systems and urban areas. Pedestrian and cycling paths should be provided as attractive and safe alternatives to cars.

  • Maintain and enhance the health and viability of urban public transit systems.

  • Integrate transport modes, whether for passengers or goods, in order to provide more efficient goods movement, and to increase the availability of lower impact transportation options such as public transit.

  • Protect historical sites and archaeological resources, reduce noise pollution, and consider aesthetics in the planning, design and construction of transportation systems.

• Decision Making Processes
  • Ensure public and private sector stakeholders coordinate their transportation planning, development and delivery activities. These transportation decisions should also be integrated with environment, health, energy and urban land-use decisions.

  • Make transportation-related decisions in an open and inclusive process. Inform the public about transportation options and impacts, and encourage them to participate in decision making so that the needs of different communities (i.e. rural vs. urban; cyclists vs. drivers, etc.) can be understood and accounted for.

  • Anticipate environmental or social impacts of transportation-related decisions rather than trying to react to them after they have occurred. This will result in considerable cost savings since transportation decisions often involve costly, long-term infrastructure investments.
  • Consider both the global and local social, economic and environmental effects of decisions.