Policies - Transportation

Approval: 2011
Revised: 2015

Whereas:

• Public transit use is an effective way of reducing GHG emissions from transportation; 
• Fare free transit has been successful in dramatically increasing ridership in other cities with a corresponding reduction in automobile use; and, 
• Fare free transit will reduce the long term costs of road expansion and maintenance;
• Public transportation improves air quality and stimulates activity in our local economy;
• The largest operating cost for public transportation is salaries and benefits;
• Fare free transit systems will reduce transit labor costs by 5% – 15%;
• The total current operating costs for Winnipeg transit is funded by the Province of Manitoba – 23.5%, City of Winnipeg – 27.0% and collected fares 49.5%; and 
• The economic, environmental and social benefits of fare free transit are significant; 

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba:

• Supports fare free public transportation service in Manitoba`s urban centres;
• Supports improved public transit, including increased frequency of buses, operating hours, and number of routes;
• Will encourage all cities in Manitoba with public transit systems to provide fare free transit by committing to change the funding formula for operating expenses for any city that adopts a fare free transit system to the Province of Manitoba – 60%, City funding – 40% and fare collection – 0%; and
• Will encourage the federal government to reallocate the existing 15% Public Transit Amount non-refundable tax  credit directly to the urban centers who provide fare free transit systems to reduce the overall funding requirements for both the province of Manitoba and the participating city;

Be It Further Resolved:

• Any additional funding required by the Manitoba government will be funded with proceeds from a new Carbon tax.

Approved: 28 May 2023

Whereas:

• The Manitoba Highway Traffic Act (HTA) currently requires cyclists to come to a complete stop at Stop Signs and stop lights as if they were in a motor vehicle;
• The HTA also prohibits bikes with wheels larger than 16” in diameter from riding on sidewalks;
• Both of the above regulations are ignorant of the fact that Bicycles are drastically different modes of transportation from automobiles and as such have significantly differing safety and infrastructure needs;
• Studies in jurisdictions such as Idaho and Delaware which have implemented “Stop-as-Yield” and “Red-as-Stop” legislation have shown as much as a 23% decrease in bicyclist injuries¹ as well as a reduction in the severity of injuries²;
• Many cyclists chose to ride on sidewalks in spite of the law due to a perceived increase in safety which results from an overall lack of safe cycling infrastructure or safely-designed streets³;
• Cyclists, unlike automobiles, do not pose a significant risk to pedestrians⁴ by riding on the sidewalk as they can easily slow down and maneuver around obstacles;
• In many jurisdictions around the world, cyclists are allowed to ride on the sidewalk if they feel more comfortable;
• Sidewalk bike bans are primarily aimed at reducing motorist-caused collisions with cyclists at intersections, which would better be reduced through safer planning, reducing residential speed limits, installing stop signs on back lanes, and banning right-turn-on-red; and
  
• Given the significant health and environmental benefits of cycling over driving, the GPM should support policies which incentivise the former over the latter;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports amending the Highway Traffic Act to:

• Permit cyclists to treat stop signs as yields and red-lights as stop signs, unless otherwise marked;
• Permit cyclists of all ages and with all sizes of tire to ride on sidewalks, provided they do so safely and yield to pedestrians;
• Give Cyclists priority right-of-way over motorists on all highways;
• Require the installation of stop signs and traffic calming measures in back lanes to prevent collisions with cyclists;
• Enact a province-wide urban default residential speed limit of no more than 30km/h; and
  
• Prohibit motorists from turning across a pedestrian or cyclist crosswalk at a red light.

References

1. Delaware Yield Crash Data
2. The Idaho Stop Law and the Severity of Bicycle Crashes: A Comparative Study
3. Metropolis: Sidewalk Circus – The bustling walkways of Tokyo are no place for cyclists—or are they?
4. ibid.

Approved: 5 January 2021

Transportation is expensive and is a major source of atmospheric pollution. Greens want to bring back rural bus service and encourage zero emission vehicles.
Whereas:

• Pollution is causing significant health problems in the people of Manitoba with the associated health care costs and productivity losses;
• Greenhouse gas emissions are causing changes to our environment and ecosystems with the associated disasters and crop failures;
• 43% of Manitoba’s GHG emissions come from the use of fossil fuels, the majority in transportation;
• Manitoba imports all the fossil fuels used in the province, we spend those fuel dollars outside our Province and we export the associated jobs to other jurisdictions;
• Manitoba Hydro infrastructure is underutilized at night;
• Charging EVs at night improves Manitoba Hydro utilization without incurring any infrastructure costs;
• Hauling fossil fuels to remote communities is expensive and dangerous;
• Many people in Manitoba do not understand the benefits and costs of EVs;
• Many automotive dealers in Manitoba do not understand the benefits and costs of EVs;
• EVs are cost neutral today with fossil fuel vehicles, when one considers monthly payments and month fuel costs;
• The trucking industry in Manitoba has no infrastructure for electric trucks;
• Most hydrogen is generated from natural gas and, when used in a vehicle, is inefficient; and
• Hydrogen generation from electrolysis studied by Manitoba Hydro determined that electrolysis is not economically viable;

Be It Resolved:

The Green Party of Manitoba supports:

• Promoting the use of electric vehicles (EVs) in Manitoba;
• Coordinating and supplementing charging infrastructure so all cities are served and the majority of towns are served;
• Improving public transit, by working toward a target where all busses, new and replacement, are zero emissions, battery electric or electric trolley busses;
• Implementing inter-city EV busses;
• Encouraging the use of EVs in remote communities;
• Educating Manitobans on the benefits and the costs of EVs;
• Educating automotive dealers in Manitoba of the benefits and the costs of EVs;
• Encouraging Manitoba Hydro to implement  reduced electricity rates for charging EVs at night, which would provide additional revenue to Hydro and benefit large customers such as fleet operators and farmers;
• Working with the trucking industry in Manitoba to establish a network of truck stops and card-locks to support electric trucking; and
• Monitoring research into clean efficient hydrogen generation.