Inaugural national sustainable urban transportation study ranks 27 cities; Victoria first and St. John’s last in joint GreenApple Canada-UBC study
VANCOUVER (Sept. 21, 2007) – The first ever national ranking of sustainable urban transportation practices has placed Victoria and Vancouver first and second and St. John’s, Newfoundland last in a study of 27 Canadian metropolitan areas.
The inaugural GreenApple Canada Smart Transportation Rankings were announced today by the Appleton Foundation, in conjunction with the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia. Ottawa-Gatineau and Winnipeg rounded out the top placing cities.
The GreenApple Canada Ranking Report addresses public interest in policies that can be taken by municipal governments to address climate change. The GreenApple Canada Report hopes to assist governments in stimulating debate and adopting best sustainable urban transportation practices. This is the first sustainable urban transportation ranking done in Canada.
“Urban governments have primary responsibility for making decisions about transportation and urban planning, but they often lack the full resources to meet these demands,” said Barry Appleton, National Director of the GreenApple program. “It is hard for cities to know how they are performing if they do not know how they compare with others.”
In constructing the inaugural 2007 GreenApple Canada Ranking Report, 27 municipal regions across Canada were ranked on:
- Transportation policy such as public transit infrastructure, expenditure and transit ridership
- Air quality measures such as ozone and carbon dioxide emission levels;
- Public policies such as anti-idling laws and trip reduction programs; and
- Technology adaptation such as the total number of hybrid or alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) in the public transit and municipal fleets.
“Our business school is proud to be a partner in this groundbreaking environmental transportation ranking,” said Daniel F. Muzyka, Dean of the Sauder School of Business at UBC. “It will help governments and other agencies enhance environmental and public health benefits while accommodating the economics of public transportation.”
GreenApple Canada Rankings
1. Victoria
2. Vancouver
3. Ottawa-Gatineau
4. Winnipeg
5. Montreal
5. Toronto
7. Sherbrooke
7. Hamilton
9. Quebec
10. Kingston
11. Halifax
11. London
13. Saguenay
14. Abbotsford
14. Kelowna
16. Kitchener
16. Calgary
18. Windsor
19. Edmonton
20. Saskatoon
20. Regina
20. Oshawa
23. St. Catharines-Niagara
24. Barrie
24. Moncton
26. Greater Sudbury/Grand Sudbury
27. St. John's
The GreenApple Canada project has received funding from the Appleton Charitable Foundation. The Appleton Foundation was graciously supported by an expert team based at the Sauder School, which was also assisted by other units at the University of British Columbia. Faculty members from UBC have provided independent expert advice on design methodology, economics, atmospheric science and urban transportation best practices.
The report can be downloaded in its entirety online, and through the interactive GreenApple wiki at www.greenapple.wikispaces.org .
About The GreenApple Program
GreenApple is a project of the Toronto-based Appleton Charitable Foundation (www.appletonfoundation.org). This Canadian Foundation was established in 1998 with the objective of enhancing human health, education and environmental sustainability. The GreenApple Project arose from a collaboration with the New York City based Jack D. Hidary Foundation’s SmartTransportation.org project.
About The Sauder School of Business
The Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia is Canada’s leading academic business school, recognized globally for its contributions to the transformation of business practices through innovative research and teaching. The school has over 28,000 alumni in 70 countries around the world.
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Contact:
Greg Descantes
greg@pacegroup.com
(604) 646-3564
Derek Moscato
UBC Sauder School of Business
derek.moscato@sauder.ubc.ca
(604) 822-8345