Work under the Rural Transit Solutions Fund Grant
In Spring 2025, the CVRD received a federal Rural Transit Solutions Fund grant valued at $50,000. Through this grant, the CVRD will be undertaking work to understand travel patterns and trends within the electoral areas to assess possible transportation interventions and solutions to help reduce the number of trips that residents need to make using private vehicles.
This project will involve developing community profiles for several rural communities in the Comox Valley electoral areas. These profiles will include demographic data and mobility data that show current travel patterns within and between each identified community, such as Saratoga Beach, Union Bay, Mt. Washington, Merville, Black Creek, Royston, Fanny Bay, Buckley Bay, Lazo, and Little River. A rural transportation assessment framework will also be developed.
This framework will then be applied specifically to the Saratoga Beach community. Both the community profile and the assessment findings will support and inform the Saratoga Beach Local Area Plan that is currently in development.
Why is this Important?
Transportation is the largest source of community-based greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the Comox Valley, accounting for 44.7 percent of total emissions. While it is essential that all communities and levels of government work toward reducing GHG emissions, the approaches will vary between rural and urban areas. While making all your trips without a car may not be feasible if you live in a rural area, targeted interventions designed to reflect the local context and informed by actual travel patterns can help reduce the total number of kilometres travelled. Even small reductions contribute meaningfully to lowering overall GHG emissions.
More Information
- Staff report dated July 10, 2025
- Saratoga Beach Local Area Plan project webpage
- More information, like staff reports, will be included here once they go to the Electoral Area Services Committee or Board of Directors