Having access to a vehicle might not seem like a community health issue, but in small, relatively remote communities, it becomes very important.
A lack of transportation is a situation facing people in Gold River and Tsa’Xana on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
The two communities are separated by a distance of about five kilometres, with no designated bike lanes or pedestrian paths, so bridging the gap remains the gap. Other transportation options for the area are also limited.
“We have to come up with a solution somehow,” said Brad Unger, Gold River’s mayor and SRD representative, at the July SRD board meeting.
Ultimately, transportation can affect people’s health, as transportation affects access to employment, food and household goods, health and social services, as well as other amenities.
In response, the Strathcona Regional District now wants a feasibility study to look at transportation in the Gold River/Tsa’Xana area, to provide a better understanding of transportation in the area.
At the July board meeting, directors passed a motion to apply for funding to cover consulting costs for a transportation feasibility study for the west coast communities.
“To me this is a first step of moving forward,” Unger said.
The motion followed a presentation by Libby King, coordinator for the Strathcona Community Health Network, who spoke about the links between transportation and health.
“One of the health network’s priorities for this year and next year is regional transportation,” she said.
She had also cited the importance of the issue following the SCHN’s release of a community health report for the SRD area this summer that examined a number of social factors related to health.
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So far, the health network has held one forum with the community in Gold River and Tsa’Xana in May, which included members of local government, the school district, health and social services agencies, among others.
The process grew out of a childhood vulnerability study from last year during which transportation, King said, was regularly identified as a barrier to raising healthy children around Vancouver Island. The Strathcona Community Health Network wants similar meetings for communities around the region.
“We hope this will be the first of many transportation projects throughout the region,” she told the SRD board. “With this one, we want to think outside the box.”
The regional district will apply for a “Creating Healthy Places” grant of up to $5,000 for the feasibility study, which would be led by a steering committee that could include government, First Nations, health, school and social services representatives.
The study will examine three possibilities raised by people at the community forum: a walking trail between Gold River and Tsa’Xana, a bus between the two or even a bus service between Gold River and Campbell River.
This last service wouldn’t necessarily have to be BC Transit, King said.
“We’re looking at all options,” she told the board.
