GC 2020
657 results found
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Support education funding so teachers have the resources to teach being green across the curriculum.
24 votesMembers of Vancouver City Council are supporting education funding.
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Awnings
Encourage Awnings - Connected dry cover improve pedestrian traffic in a rainy city. @ More bus shelters that really shelter.
20 votesWeather protection will be highlighted as an important design consideration for the pedestrian realm. Many parts of the city (e.g. most of the downtown, most commercial areas) already include design guidelines for weather protection and design guidelines (including requirements for awnings). However, there may be more opportunities to encourage existing buildings to add awnings (and similar weather protection) through renovation and building facade improvement programs.
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Encourage smaller, denser housing
Many people around the world live in smaller housing units in denser neighbourhoods. In Toronto, many freehold lots are between 15-20 feet wide. The typical Vancouver lot is 33 feet wide. We could double the density in the City by encouraging the development of smaller, attached homes on freehold lots that are 15-16 feet wide. Density alone is not enough to create a livable city, but density will help to reduce emissions as well as helping to improve the affordability of housing in Vancouver.
39 votesThe Ecodensity planning process kicked off efforts in this area. Laneway housing is a good example smaller, denser housing we are starting to see across the city.
http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/watersewers/sewers/permits/laneway.htm -
17 votes
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solar water taxis
London has a solar water taxi, why can't we? All those little boats beetling around--not to mention the seabuses--could be solar. Each station would give them a quick charge or battery change.
28 votes -
No Car City: Measure and reduce car passenger miles: If we drive less, a green city can emerge.
What kind a lever can we pull that automatically creates a cascade of green behaviours?
It would seem that very few us would choose to trade our lives for a daily commute, but we do because we don't have much of a choice.
If we aimed to reduce per capita passenger car miles traveled in our cities, we'd be able to begin to free up some of the 30% of city surface area used for cars; it would mean we'd be doing everything closer to where we live, including work. We'd burn less oil, and we'd walk and ride more.…45 votesOne of the 2020 targets for Green Transportation is to reduce distance driven per resident 20% from 2007 levels. One of the major challenges is data — better data sources are needed to monitor progress and set more detailed targets. Odometer readings would be one way to get better VKT numbers, and would be possible with support from the Province and ICBC. Improved regional travel surveys are another possible approach.
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refillable containers at supermarkets
Refillable milk, butter, juice, etc. stations at supermarkets would eliminate such an enormous amount of wasted packaging. Think about bringing your refillable bottles every week to get what you need. This goes beyond the local level though - we'd need to get producers onboard. Taking it a step further would be to fill all the stations with locally produced food/drinks.
35 votes -
Create program for low-income individuals to weatherize existing buildings
Create incentives as well as training program for low income / marginalized individuals to weatherize existing buildings.
Weatherizing (caulking and weather stripping gaps in walls, windows, doors, roof, and floors) is a simple and affordable energy conservation solution that makes a HUGE difference, often with a payback of less than year. There are many existing buildings in Vancouver that are poorly performing due to a lack of weather-proofing.
Think of all the green jobs we could create if people were trained in how to do this, and there were incentives make it easier to implement.
22 votesPilot project underway with EMBERS.
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Have a Vancouver gas tax, which the money would fund transit.
Have a tax on gas (and diesel) sold in Vancouver. Kind of like Montreal Island has. The money from this tax will go to fund public transit expansion projects and improvements.
9 votes -
Add a rapid transit line to the valley
Driving along the #1, it seems ridiculous to me that we're widening the highway and adding more bridges, which will just INCREASE commuter traffic.
What we should really be doing is providing an alternative to jumping into single occupancy vehicles to commute into the city, in order to DECREASE commuter traffic.
It's inconceivable to me that there is no rail line out to Abbotsford, Chilliwack, etc.
67 votesOutside City jurisdiction. While improved transit service South-of-Fraser is important, the Greenest City plan focuses on projects within municipal boundaries.
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Reduce the use of faresaver and replace it with a resuable and reloadable card.
Instead of wasting paper on faresaver cards, why not use a plastic card that resembles like a credit card that you never have to throw out. Then you can reload it with as much money as you want on the card, either online or at a store. Also, you can put an option of reloading the card with a "virtual" bus pass, so you can get on the bus as many times as you want during that whole month that you chose to pay for.
Then on the bus, you'll just have to scan it and the machine will recognize…28 votes -
Encourage people to work closer to home through tax benefits or other measures
More people out of cars (or shorter trips), being more connected to your community, and less time on the road = less money spent and more time doing what you enjoy and a greener and happier population. Tax benefits to those who are able to work closer to home and free support to help people find comparable jobs closer to their community. With some organizations (government civil servants, teachers, etc.) this may be possible through matching / trading positions.
9 votesOutside City jurisdiction.
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Grants for passive houses and buildings
The term Passive house (Passivhaus in German) refers to the rigorous, voluntary, Passivhaus standard for energy efficiency in a building, reducing its ecological footprint.[1] It results in ultra-low energy buildings that require little energy for space heating or cooling.[2][3] A similar standard, MINERGIE-P, is used in Switzerland.[4] The standard is not confined only to residential properties; several office buildings, schools, kindergartens and a supermarket have also been constructed to the standard.
20 votesThe draft Greenest City Action Plan includes strategies to make energy efficient new buildings more affordable through fee-bates, code relaxations and financial tools.
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Bike alternative (bridge?) to Massey Tunnel
You can't bike through Massey Tunnel. At ALL. That means you have to take a bus to the ferry, or the free shuttle service which works only in summertime and at very particular times. If you miss it, you have to wait for hours. There should be a bike bridge instead -- more flexibility for the bikers and eliminate the shuttle too.
43 votesOutside city boundaries and jurisdiction. Addressing major gaps in the regional cycling network could potentially be addressed through the relevant local municipalities and/or TransLink. TransLink’s draft regional cycling strategy can be found here: http://translink.ca/cycling .
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16 votes
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Dumpster free alleys
Neighbourhood business improvement associations are behind this idea. So is Zero Waste Vancouver. The era of Dinosaur Dumpsters is coming to a close. By taking back our public right-of-ways from the garbage industry, we will motivate the industry to evolve into a recycling industry. Let's get together, Vancouver, and show the world how it can be done right. Small is beautiful.
23 votes -
Meltingpot
New immigrants should be encouraged to learn English. Non English signs should be removed. Everyone should feel warm and fuzzy going into any ethnic store. Bringing everyone on the the same page will promote respect, friendliness and our community will grow Green and Strong!!
11 votes -
Offer a more extensive and tailored range of transit passes, Berlin-style
We spent a month in Berlin, Germany and purchased a month-long transit pass that allowed us to travel only AFTER 10 am.
The pass cost significantly less than a normal transit pass (good for 24 hours) and because we were not commuting, we were not inconvenienced in the slightest.
Also, in New York, we bought week-long passes.
These sorts of discounted pass options make sense for locals and visitors alike and make it easier to convince people to get out of cars or cabs. I would like to see a greater range of transit passes available at several different price…
76 votesThis is a great idea, but outside the city’s jurisdiction. This is something TransLink could consider, perhaps in conjunction with the SmartCard rollout expected in 2013, which will enable new and more equitable pricing schemes.
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Buying of Local Foods
Encourage the buying of local foods so products can be bought and sold without harmful chemicals, and are sold and grown with natural products
36 votesThe draft Greenest City Action Plan includes an action to create a local food procurement strategy for City facilities.
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Work with school districts to make commuter cycling/bike confidence skills part of Phys-Ed
Like most cities, there are different sorts of routes for biking - from trails, to physically separate lanes, to painted lanes, or signed shared bike routes. In order to take full advantage of these the City should work with School Districts to help support cycling as a Phys-Ed requirement - working up to kids going on field trips on bikes. There could also be hardscape bike-training space with miniature lanes in neighbourhood parks for families to take their kids to practice riding.
37 votesGreat idea. The draft Greenest City Action Plan will include directions to work with the school board and provincial government to support compulsory commuter cycling education in school curriculums.
