Bike-share may be coming back to Ottawa

After a pretty successful pilot program from 2009 was set back in 2010, some bike-share program may return to Ottawa for the summer of 2011, according to Centretown News. From their coverage:

[NCC Director of Communications Lucie] Caron says the NCC is working co-operatively with Ottawa and Gatineau and hoping for the program to be completed by the spring.

Media spokesperson Jasmine Leduc confirmed the NCC’s expectation for 50 stations and 500 bicycles to be available in Canada’s capital region and on both sides of the river by next year.

Ottawa's 2009 bike-share pilot program was supposed to set the groundwork for a permanent system, but in 2010 the NCC was unable to find a partner to manage the Bixi bike-share service, so it didn't get off the ground. Now, it appears the program is expected to move forward in the new year.

In the Centretown News article, Somerset Councillor Diane Holmes voiced significant support for the moving forward with the project. However, in a June 2008 interview with PTIO, new councillor David Chernushenko suggested the city needs to truly invest in building up a cycling infrastructure in order to make sure any bike-share program will work:

"We would start by saying every time a street or a sidewalk needs repair, we can seize that opportunity not just to replace the sewer infrastructure and the telecom cables and everything else that’s there. We’re actually going to redesign that street."

Many recent street redesigns have included measures to make them more pedestrian-friendly, particularly in the core, and a potential segregated cycling lane would only add to that.

Atypical transit: Moving sidewalks

Last week,the online magazine Slate discussed the possibility of solving some urban transportation problems in North America's biggest cities with a long-established, but rarely acknowledged, for of transit: Moving sidewalks. Author Tom Vanderbilt, in his "Nimble Cities" series, suggested that while long-distance transportation is solved by technologies like airplanes, trains, buses, and automobiles, the shorter-haul runs haven't been addressed by them. Maybe moving sidewalks are a possible solution to that problem.

The moving walkways in most airports, as the Slate article outlined, would probably be of limited use in terms of urban transportation, because the cost would be hard to justify based on the actual speed of transportation. There are, however, high-speed moving walkways, which have a consistent surface composed of different sections, and people embark and disembark using variations of the on-ramps and off-ramps you'd use on a conventional highway, so there is a gradual buildup to the high speed. Wikipedia explains one such high-speed moving sidewalk, the Speedaway:

"The entrance to the system was like a very wide escalator, with broad metal tread plates of a parallelogram shape. After a short distance the tread plates were accelerated to one side, sliding past one another to form progressively into a narrower but faster moving track which travelled at almost a right-angle to the entry section. The passenger was accelerated through a parabolic path to a maximum design speed of 15 km/h (9 mph)."

At 15km/h, that's more than twice the average walking speed, and if commuters walked on the moving sidewalk, it would just add to the speed improvement over regular walking. It's not appropriate for long distances, and walking is fine for short distances, but it might be good for medium-length distances.

So where might this be good for Ottawa? I discussed the option of light-rail on Bank Street last week, but given the relatively short distance between Billings Bridge and downtown Ottawa (about 4 km, a 15-20 minute ride on a high-speed moving walkway) and the large number of small retail outlets and the well-established residential zones in behind much of the retail on Bank, it would likely be well-used. Or maybe along Wellington and Rideau Streets, running in front of Parliament Hill, over the Canal, past the Rideau Centre and the Westin and Lord Elgin Hotels would be a great draw for tourists looking to see the sights in Ottawa.

Obviously, though, there are huge question marks about moving sidewalks. First and foremost is the actual practicality, and the cost v. benefit analysis, but Slate does outline some others: maintenance costs and issues, and possible weather problems (although maybe a moving sidewalk could take care of its own snow removal?), not to mention the fact that walking from the bus, train, or car to work is some of the only excercise some people get. But it's still fun to think about.

Bixi bike-rental program in Ottawa hits a snag

Last year, the National Capital Commission ran a successful pilot project with Montreal-based Bixi bicycles for a bike-rental service. The program found the service would be economically viable, but the NCC, who wanted the bikes to be available beginning in June, hasn't found a company to take on the contract to manage the service this year.

From CBC.ca:

However, officials say the terms of the proposed contract appear to have scared off bidders.

The NCC wanted the winning company to own the bicycles and locking stations, but companies didn't seem to want the financial risk of that kind of arrangement: No bike-sharing companies responded, including the Montreal company whose Bixi bicycles were used in the pilot project.

It's too bad the system has hit this snag. It gained a fair bit of momentum last year, and seemed rather popular with locals and tourists--one would expect that momentum to have carried into this year. Hopefully the problem can be resolved before all that momentum is lost, and the program has to start over from scratch.

Bluesfest director disappointed with timing of O-Train maintenance

aerial shot of Bluesfest at LeBreton Flats, 2007, from Wikipedia

Last week, we mentioned that the O-Train is going to be pulled offline from July 12-Aug. 14, 2010 for maintenance and repairs. What I neglected to mention was that the Ottawa Bluesfest overlaps with the downtime: from July 6-18, 2010. So for about a week, folks aren't going to use the O-Train to get on their way to Bluesfest, they'll have to take the "O-Train Special" bus that runs alongside it. Bluesfest executive director Mark Monahan said he's disappointed in the timing of the repairs, according to the Ottawa Citizen:

"It's disappointing" because it will inconvenience fans, Monahan said. "People are still going to get here," but the transit authority could have delayed the work for a week until the festival was over."

Although Monahan's disappointment is understandable, the repairs are likely not going to effect the festival's attendees too much; the O-Train wouldn't likely be a main transporter for fans (the Transitway will likely carry the lion's share of commuters), and those who would have used the O-Train are able to use bus service running along a virtually identical--if somewhat longer--route. And with the current schedule slated to finish the repairs August 14, even that is coming close to the beginning of the school year, when the O-Train's biggest ridership base--Carleton University students--begin using the service in large numbers again. Delaying the repairs, even just a week, would run the risk of having a further delay in construction, for whatever unseen reasons, cut dangerously close to or perhaps right into the school year.

Will the repairs inconvenience any readers who plan on attending Bluesfest? Please feel free to discuss your thoughts in the comments.

Municipal 'smart cards' in the works

City councillors have been talking about implementing a 'Smart Card' service so that citizens can simply use their pre-paid card to access any number of municipal, and perhaps even private' services--including bus fares--perhaps as soon as 2012.

From an article in the Ottawa Citizen:

By the year 2012, Ottawa residents should be able to buy their morning coffee, hop on the bus, borrow library books, and go for a skate in a community arena, all using the same pre-paid smart card, says College Councillor Rick Chiarelli.

Hey, that sounds kind of familiar. If fact, if I were to drop the 'pre-paid' and 'smart' adjectives before talking about this futuristic card, it sounds like something I already use all the time, to pay for public and private services: A credit card.

In fact, taking advantage of existing card payment technology, New Jersey and New York transit agencies (all three of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority [MTA], the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey [PATH], NJ Transit [NJT]) have partnered with MasterCard to install the PayPass tap-and-pay system on certain buses and trains in the area. From the official press release announcing the pilot program:

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PATH), NJ TRANSIT (NJT) and MasterCard Worldwide today announced the launch of a six month pilot program in which MasterCard PayPass will be accepted for fare payments on select train and bus routes throughout New York City and New Jersey. Today's announcement enables riders of the three transit systems to purchase fares and transfer between transit systems simply by tapping a single type of contactless credit or debit card or device.

[...]

"The technology that we're testing will make life easier for our customers and help reduce our cost of doing business at the same time," said MTA Chairman and CEO Jay H. Walder. "By using an open network we'll break down regional barriers and let people travel across the region with a card that's already sitting in their wallets. We're thrilled to be working with the Port Authority, NJ TRANSIT and MasterCard to test these innovations for our customers."

A deal like the above one with MasterCard or some similar arrangement could provide certain benefits over installing an unique O-Card system, first and foremost being the existing infrastructure for payments already in place. It would also place the management of the system on the shoulders of a company whose primary responsibility is management of these types of payment systems; no matter how competent any city might be, few have any experience with this industry. It would also offer citizens from outside Ottawa a very simple way to pay for transit in the city, rather than having to purchase a pre-paid O-Card.

On the other hand, there are significant obstacles a personal credit-based MasterCard when paying for city services. Primarily, the fact that not everyone can actually have a credit card (based on their personal credit ratings), while every citizen should be able to access municipal services. And perhaps more importantly, the pre-paid nature of the O-Card would preclude interest charges, while a credit card virtually promotes them. So there are distinct and inherent differences between the two models.

Somewhere in the middle there may be a solution which blends the benefits of each style. Whether it comes through a partnership with some payment company, or the incorporation of certain practices into a city-managed pre-paid card, but there are ample possibilities for making the system as effective and cost-efficient as possible.

UPDATE: Transit Toronto recently had a blog post about that city's pilot project using Presto cards for tap-and-pay fare payments.

The City of Ottawa: A green destination

Sometimes when you live in the city of Ottawa, you forget just how nice this city can be. Sometimes all it takes is an outsider's perspective, though, and you're quickly reminded that this city has a lot of great attractions to offer--for vacationers or staycationers.

The Mother Nature Network recognized that fact, and recently proclaimed Ottawa as a green destination for travellers. They commended, among other things, Ottawa's alternative transit options--whether they be public transit, skating, walking, or biking. Here's what they had to say, but check out the article for ideas of things you may be taking for granted:

Ottawa has an expansive public transportation system. Buses and rail lines make it easy to get around year-round. A regional rail network connects Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. Because these cities have good public transit networks, it's possible to tour urban Quebec and Ontario without having to once step into a car.

Ottawa's compact size and user-friendly layout make it an ideal city to explore on foot. Many of the city's attractions are in the vicinity of the Parliament buildings. Ottawa Walking Tours offers guided two-hour sightseeing strolls in downtown Ottawa.

Bicycles are another form of convenient, low-impact transport in Ottawa. There are nearly 100 miles of bike paths throughout the city, and many roadways are bike-friendly. Even pedaling through the downtown area is relatively safe and straightforward.

They really make our city look like a heck of a place. Although it's easy to get frustrated with some of the decision-making processes in our city, it's still a nice place to be. Any tourists out there who'd like to comment on the city of Ottawa? Any residents feel differently than the Mother Nature Network?