HALIFAX - It's December. Inevitably, this time of year makes us all take the time to reflect on the year that's past; what's changed, what's stayed the same, what it was you said you'd do and never got around to, and what you wish you had done.   And then there are the things that you couldn't have anticipated doing, but are so happy you did. In her December 10th District 14 E-mail newsletter, Councillor Jennifer Watts informed her constituents that she had taken up a challenge to travel car-free for the month of December as a part of the A Dare to Remember campaign. I wondered why, so I wrote to Jennifer and asked her some questions. Here's what she had to share: What inspired you to get involved with the Stephen Lewis Foundation's Dare to Remember project? JW: Kristin Roe contacted me to ask if I would take part in the campaign. Kristin swam the English Channel (and Halifax Harbour!) earlier this year to help raise funds for the foundation and when she asked if I would take on a challenge it was too hard to say no. The Stephen Lewis Foundation is doing really important work in Africa and I was glad to take on a dare that supported their work and also supported sustainability in HRM. Why did you decide to challenge yourself in this way? JW: Kristin suggested that I take on a challenge related to my interest in the environment.  I talked with my family about it and they suggested that I give up driving my car for the month of December. It was kind of scary since the weather is unpredictable and there are lots of social functions to go to on top of regular meetings but I thought this is the best month to see if it can work or not work. So far I have been cycling, walking, transiting, taxi-ing, and hitching rides in other people's cars. Women in developing countries often are dependent on walking, taxis, buses and the generosity of others for rides to get around — driving a car is not a reality for a majority of these women and yet they are the backbone of their families and their communities. It seemed that the dare for me would not be as challenging as the reality that these women live every day of their lives. So from Dec 1 to Dec 31 I decided to not drive my car and to rely on other modes of transport and the kindness of friends, colleagues and family for carpooling when necessary.

[caption id="attachment_4765" align="alignnone" width="600" caption="Source: Statistics Canada"][/caption] Despite dramatic differences in population, density, infrastructure, and growth, there is remarkable consistency between commuting patterns in Montreal, Ottawa, Toronto, and Halifax, particularly when it comes to travelling by car. And incidentally, when it comes to getting us out of them, we seem to find buses and bike lanes unconvincing. A closer look at our most recent census data raises some surprising – and some predictable – findings about the way we get to work and how preferences change as our cities grow.

SAINT JOHN - It's been a mixed bag here in the Port City lately. Tuesday marked the 225th anniversary of the incorporation of Canada's 'original city'; Commercial Properties presented a town clock at the corner of King & Prince William streets, with organizers putting on a gala celebration at Harbour Station marking the beginning of an eight month extravaganza. The day before the festivities, marked the beginning of $35 million worth of construction work on the Saint John Harbour Bridge. Harbour Passage, the pedestrian route between the North End and West Side of the city and Uptown, is to be effectively closed this summer, autumn & next year (photos here). See you in 2012!

HALIFAX - About 25 people gathered in front on the Halifax Farmers' Market last Saturday to take part in Halifax's Jane's Walk. This year's walk, "Change of (s)Pace," wandered through the downtown, stopping to muse about all kinds of transformations the city is undergoing. photo by Alison Creba Hosted by Spacing Atlantic contributors, we followed the participatory principle that everyone is an authority on their community.  Anyone interested was given the opportunity to share thoughts and knowledge on their neighborhoods and city, taking up the megaphone whenever the urge arose.

A series that examines urban and architectural issues in Halifax by way of unbuilt proposals authored by different designers, this week featuring a project by graduate architect Paul Zylstra for a bus shelter at the intersection of Spring Garden Road and South Park Street. All drawings and images courtesy Paul Zylstra. Text by Dustin Valen HALIFAX - Criticism of public transit risks becoming a proverb for indignation. Notwithstanding long waits, bad moods, and iffy weather, public transit remains a necessity for many people. Languid discomforts taint our perception of public transit and sidetrack discussions about sustainability, the right to mobility, and the importance of economic diversity in our city. Not the least bit helpful is the searing objectivity that has inspired the design of our existing curbside bus shelters. More insidious than the status quo, these buildings do little to inspire the imagination and underscore the lack of value we invest in our public transit system. A more inspiring discussion surrounds a provocative first year studio project by graduate architect Paul Zylstra who, by creating a pragmatic connection between public transit and public space, transforms the humble bus shelter into an artful paradigm. A bus shelter personifies a community, signifying a place where people choose to live, work, and shop; a map of public transit across Halifax and its regional municipality reveals the densest and most frequented places in the city as well as daily routines of thousands of commuters. Although individually modest, each bus shelter is part of a vast network that is traveled in small segments by thousands of people every day — tiny outposts that safely negotiate passengers from streets to sidewalks.

HALIFAX - Spacing Atlantic contributors are hosting a Jane's Walk in Halifax this upcoming Saturday May 1st. Come join us as we wander the urban space, ponder the changes we face, and help to set the pace. The general theme of the Halifax walk is change, transformation, and transition — the downtown is in limbo and we want to muse about it. Meet us on Lower Water St outside the Farmers' Market at noon, as we set off to investigate an urban landscape in flux. Jane’s Walk honours the ...

HALIFAX - It goes without saying that there's plenty Halifax could do to improve its pedestrian and cycling infrastructure. Nothing, however, epitomizes this fact so much as the 'gate' on Quingate. One of the best used pedestrian and cycling passageways, the gate is nothing less than Halifax's most glaring bottlenecks. Yet unlike other bottlenecks, the gate happens to be the cheapest and simplest one to fix. A through-fare for many commuters, students and errand runners alike, the high volume of foot traffic and continuous flow of cyclists is literally confirmed by the regular spectators of ...

HALIFAX - This unprecedented spring sunshine has brought Halifax city dwellers out from our respective hovels and into the urban landscape. The warm weather has ushered in a sense of freedom and mobility, although perhaps for some more than others. For persons with disabilities, winter in Halifax represents being caged. The snow and ice, the inaccessible city infrastructure, and the limited availability of public transit options can make one a prisoner in their own home. For instance, if a person has a physical disability impeding them from climbing stairs, their access to Metro Transit buses is seriously limited. Of all the 52 different bus routes offered by Halifax Metro Transit, only 19 of those offer Accessible Low-Floor (ALF) buses. The absurdity of offering limited public transit options to those persons who most need mobility assistance is a serious oversight.