Abstract Manager

The field of transportation planning has entered a revolutionary period with the onset of recent unprecedent events such as the global pandemic which has changed travel behaviours, emerging mobility technologies which expanded the range of possible travel modes, and new provincial housing-related legislation which has altered funding models. “Business-as-usual” to plan for transportation may no longer be suitable or desirable to address these changes.

The development of the Town of Oakville’s Transportation Master Plan (TMP) explored a new approach that centered around the theme of “Empirical creativity”.  This approach blends in data-driven, best-practices-driven, and pragmatic-driven technical justifications to guide decision-making and investments that are bold and innovative.  The expectation of this approach is to support out-of-the-box solutions in a less risk-taking environment, which prepare Oakville for pilots and permanent implementation with higher likelihood of success.

This presentation explores how the Oakville TMP leveraged and integrated “Big Data” sources into the traditional travel demand forecasting macro-simulation model, to reflect changes in travel behavior and to coordinate infrastructure priorities with socio-demographic characteristics such as attributes from social equity and livability impacts that were previously unquantifiable. Also, assessing demographic data from unique data sources in each neighborhood in Oakville allowed tailor-made solutions to be created, such as the development of different variations of Complete Street, and the implementation of quick-build or pilot projects for safer streets.

Additionally, research work with the University of Toronto supported an e-scooter business case and pilot program solution. This research comprised of assessing the existing environment and developing a framework for future and latent demand prediction models for micromobility in Oakville. The outcome of this work complemented the overall TMP multimodal findings, and provided specific details to prepare for the future business case for the pilot and the necessary operational/educational/legislative changes for this emerging mode of mobility.

Like many TMPs elsewhere, the end goal of the Oakville TMP is to unlock all potentials towards a community that is walk/cycle-friendly, and transit/goods/services supportive. This Empirical creativity approach guides the blueprint development, and must be accompanied by comprehensive interactive engagement activities to be able to reflect the specific community needs. All in all, this approach highlights the need to break the inertia of status quo practices, as Transportation Planning is a profession that should evolve with the world around it.