The people of Ottawa are right to mock the mayor for his 150 seconds walking on a quiet Queen Elizabeth Driveway
Published Aug 10, 2023 • Last updated 1 hour ago • 4 minute read
OTTAWA: Runners, walkers and cyclists were out along the Rideau Canal on both the pathway as well as Queen Elizabeth Driveway that flows right beside, Saturday, July 22, 2023. Photo by Ashley Fraser /Postmedia
On the day that Ottawa’s LRT, or part of it, returned to some semblance of service (“I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…”), Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe opted to spend an afternoon walking along the Queen Elizabeth Drive to film a video in which he argued that the NCC should reopen the section of road between Pretoria and Fifth avenues to motor traffic.
It seems something of an ongoing crusade for Sutcliffe, who for months has talked about how the QED closure brings added stress to the Glebe, but his latest selfie video sure has some goofy-looking arguments.
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For starters, he cites the fact that no cyclists or pedestrians passed him for two-and-a-half minutes as justification to return the parkway to cars—despite the fact that pedestrians and one scooter or e-bike user were behind him in the video. His “if you don’t use it, you lose it” argument has been mercilessly mocked on X — formerly Twitter — with residents suggesting other streets that should be closed following 150 seconds of disuse by cars.
Never mind that it was heavily overcast on Tuesday afternoon when no one passed Sutcliffe, with a 90 per cent chance of rain forecast.
Never mind, too, that the NCC’s seven-day-a-week, 8 a.m.-to-8 p.m. closure of QED is only scheduled to end on Labour Day, when it will revert to weekends and holiday Mondays only, until Thanksgiving.
And never mind, three, that the NCC already lifts the vehicle ban for such events as Redblacks games, the Escapade music festival, or to ease congestion created by Queensway closures.
Yet Sutcliffe notes that “in some cases, this stretch of road isn’t being used at all for 30, 45 or even 90 seconds,” as though this should be an affront to all level-headed taxpayers.
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The bicyclists and pedestrians using QED, he adds, can simply move to the recreational pathway adjacent to the road.
True, though it’s passing strange that while he indicates he’s in favour of a “balanced approach,” he doesn’t share the opinion that cars could likewise use other, adjacent paths — aka neighbouring roads — to get where they’re going. As I’ve noted before on this topic, I travel the city most often by car, and I frequently use the Driveway. Yet when I come upon this closed-off portion, I simply go around it. Yes, it adds a little time to my trip, but it’s hardly as bothersome as Sutcliffe makes it sound. And I’ve never encountered gridlock on Bank Street or Colonel By Drive because of it.
If you agree that active transportation should be encouraged, as Sutcliffe also argues, then why not close some streets elsewhere where there isn’t already infrastructure for cyclists and pedestrians, like there is along The Driveway? Yet that doesn’t seem to be part of his argument; he’s not suggesting we give parts of Montreal Road, Carling Avenue or Baseline Road to non-motorists. He just wants this bit of the QED open to cars again, full stop.
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Then there’s the wee matter of the city’s official plan, which specifically asks the NCC to “re-imagine Queen Elizabeth Driveway and Colonel By Drive to reduce the roads’ importance as a commuter route in favour of pedestrian activity and greenspace connections with consideration of Canal crossings. This may include limiting vehicular access and reducing traffic speed.” If Sutcliffe opposes this, he really ought to convince councillors to amend it.
His video, meanwhile, ends with an infographic that presents “some new information” he says city staff have gathered. Only it’s an apples-and-oranges mishmash, without sourcing, methodology, or context included. For example, it compares/contrasts the 625 vehicles per hour that used the QED in July 2019 with the 104.3 cyclists who did so each hour in July 2023. As I write this column working from home—as many Ottawans now do—I believe there might have been a major global event sometime between 2020 and 2022 that had a huge impact on this “new data” that our mayor isn’t considering.
Additionally, the mayor’s data notes that more than 3,100 cyclists used the pathway each day in July 2019, while fewer than 1,900 used the pathway OR the road in July 2023. It does not note, however, that it rained at least a millimetre on 14 days in July this year, for a total accumulation of 163 mm. In 2019, it only rained on four days in July, for a total of 44.5 mm.
On Thursday morning, I asked the City of Ottawa’s communications team if I could have a closer look at this “new data” the mayor presented. “Request received. We’ll see what we can get you,” was the reply I got at 9:06 am. I didn’t hear from them for the rest of the day.
Perhaps the mayor’s next video can offer “some new information” on confirmation bias, but I’d rather not see it. There are other hills in this city that need the mayor’s attention far more than this 900-metre stretch.
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