We Want to Hear About Your Transportation Needs
COURTENAY, 13 June 2023
What is This Study About?
Island Coastal Economic Trust (the Trust) and Vancouver Island Economic Alliance (VIEA), with funding provided by the Province, are exploring passenger transportation between communities on Vancouver Island and parts of coastal B.C., including the Sunshine Coast.
The focus is on passenger transportation connections between communities, especially in rural and remote areas as well as the islands, that are either not currently served or are underserved by buses, ferries, water taxis, float planes, community shuttles, or other ways of getting around. Connections between transportation modes (e.g., ferry to bus) are also included. This study will look at what exists today with community-to-community transportation, will consult on the challenges and barriers, and will bring forward the opportunities to better connect communities. The purpose is to provide the provincial government with information to help inform future policy and investment decisions in the region.
It should also be noted that the Greater Victoria area and existing transit services within communities are not part of this study.
With this in mind, we are hoping to hear from you on what has been seen and felt when it comes to current community-to-community transportation and other such issues through online survey. The survey is available from now until June 30, 2023.
CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE SURVEY
Why is it Important to Participate?
Hearing from you and others in communities will help us understand the following:
- What are the challenges when it comes to existing passenger transportation among communities?
- What is important to address when it comes to transportation, such as safety and reliability?
- What needs are not being met today, in being able to transit between your community and other communities?
- What can be done to improve the means of, and access to, transportation between your community and other communities?
To recognize the time being put toward the survey, five $100 VISA gift cards will be awarded at random to those who complete it by the deadline (June 30, 2023).
Who Should Take Part in This Study?
As part of this study, the Trust and VIEA are hoping that those who live in the Trust’s service area, see map here, will participate in the survey. The Trust’s service area includes these areas:
– North Vancouver Island and the Broughton Archipelago
– Strathcona
– qathet and Desolation Sound
– Comox Valley
– Pacific Rim and Alberni Valley
– Sunshine Coast
– Nanaimo, Parksville, Qualicum Beach
– Cowichan Valley and Juan de Fuca
– Southern Gulf Islands
FAQs
What is the focus of the study?
The focus is on passenger transportation among communities, especially in rural and remote areas as well as the islands, that are either not currently served or are underserved by buses, ferries, water taxis, float planes, community shuttles, or other ways of getting around.
What is the purpose of the study?
The main purpose of the engagement is to help the Province and other interested parties develop locally-driven transportation solutions. The study also seeks to understand what exists today when it comes to community-to-community transportation, to consult on the challenges and barriers, and to bring forward opportunities to better connect communities.
What is learned through community engagement sessions and an online survey will also inform a micro-granting ($5,000 to $15,000) program to receive, assess, and fund applications to support regional transportation planning, delivery of regional transportation services, or adding capacity to regional passenger transportation.
How will the study be conducted?
The Trust and VIEA retained the services of MNP, a Canadian consulting firm with offices across Vancouver Island, to conduct the research and carry out engagement with communities. In so doing, the study will build on what is already known from past transportation-related reports completed within the Trust’s service area over the past several years.
What is learned from this research and the community engagements will be presented in a final report with will be published online in summer 2023. This report will also inform the design of a capacity fund, a new micro-granting program, that will fund discrete initiatives prioritized by communities through this study.
How can I participate?
Besides the online survey, facilitated sessions will be held with First Nations, local governments, industry, local research organizations, and community groups across Vancouver Island and in the Sunshine Coast. These sessions will be by invitation. If you would like to be included in a session, please email: registrations.bc@mnp.ca.
IN-PERSON COMMUNITY SESSIONS
VIRTUAL SESSIONS
Is there an incentive to participate?
Your views and suggestions will help inform future strategies along with initiatives aimed at improving community-to-community transportation. We are also offering the chance to win one of five $100 VISA gift cards for those who take part in the online survey by the deadline (June 30, 2023).
Is there financial support for participating?
There are funds available to help cover travel costs for Indigenous people located in remote areas to attend the in-person engagement sessions. For more information, please email registrations.bc@mnp.ca. Indigenous participants will be offered an honorarium for participating in these engagement sessions.
What about information security and confidentiality?
Participation in the online survey will be anonymous. The views and opinions shared through the survey will not be associated with any individual and are only accessible to MNP, the consultant partner to the Trust and VIEA. No personal identifying information will be requested. The survey is hosted by SimpleSurvey, a Canadian online survey platform. SimpleSurvey servers are located in Canada.
For those participating in engagement sessions, no video or audio recording will occur, and individual comments and feedback will not be shared with any other party. MNP will focus on the main points of what is heard and present a summary report to the Trust and VIEA.
The MNP Privacy Policy can be viewed at www.mnp.ca/en/privacy-policy.
What are the geographic areas of the study?
The study area is shown on the map located here.
How did the study originate?
The British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure has engaged the Island Coastal Economic Trust (the Trust) to deliver this project. See the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure’s news release about this project, here.
The Trust partnered with Vancouver Island Economic Alliance to conduct this project. Community-based sessions to obtain broad regional perspectives will be completed by the end of June 2023; the engagement will inform the design of a capacity fund, a new micro-granting program, that will fund discrete initiatives prioritized by communities through this study.
Island Coastal Economic Trust
Island Coastal Economic Trust (the Trust) works to build a sustainable and resilient coastal economy in reciprocal relationships with First Nations, municipalities, and regional districts across Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, and island and inlets from the Salish Sea to Cape Caution. Serving over half a million residents, the Trust partners with communities in the development and financing of their economic infrastructure and diversification efforts through our unique structure that is led by, and accountable to, communities.
Vancouver Island Economic Alliance
Vancouver Island Economic Alliance (VIEA) is a registered non-government, non-profit society spearheading regional economic development for the entire Vancouver Island and rural islands region. The society is funded by memberships, sponsorships and gate receipts from events.
When will the study be completed and the results made public?
Community engagement will be completed by the end of June 2023; the results will then be summarized by MNP and presented in a report to the Trust and VIEA by late July. The report will be made public and available on the Trust’s and VIEA’s respective websites by the end of July.
What about Cultural Safety, Accessibility, and Inclusivity?
In all engagement sessions, at least one of the MNP facilitators will be trained in mediation with experience conducting consultations that provide for cultural and psychological safety. MNP will also establish cultural safety norms at the beginning of all engagement sessions. MNP will actively intervene in any circumstance where participant conduct is outside of agreed upon norms. Further to this, all in-person meeting rooms are accessible and all reasonable efforts will be made to accommodate participants’ needs.
Questions or Suggestions?
- Please contact MNP at registrations.bc@mnp.ca.
- Questions for the Island Coastal Economic Trust may be directed to the Trust website, here.
