Fuel Free Penticton encourages car-free travel in Penticton, B.C.SUPPLIED
There are some cities you visit in which getting around by car doesn’t make sense. Whenever I visit New York, for example, I walk or subway and take a taxi only as a last resort.
There are other cities, though, that are synonymous with car use. On a recent trip to Los Angeles, I assumed my nephew and I would get everywhere via taxi. And we did on the first day, until after a hike to the Hollywood sign, Uber presented me with a quote of US$90-something to get back to our downtown hotel. Surge pricing at its finest. We walked a few blocks and waited a few minutes until the price lowered to US$45. The next morning, we got Tap cards to access the city’s Metro system and spent the rest of our trip getting around via Metro or by bike. From downtown to Universal Studios and later Santa Monica on Metro, between Santa Monica and Venice on bike. We even ended up taking a bus to the airport.
While L.A.’s tourism board doesn’t actively promote a car-free visit, it does offer links to the Metro system’s website so visitors can figure out how to get from A to B via transit. There are other cities, though, that encourage visitors to ditch cars when in town. Reasons include alleviating traffic congestion, supporting local environmental initiatives and getting visitors to slow down and explore off-the-beaten path sites and businesses.
In some instances, tourists don’t have a choice about leaving the car behind. In 2023, out of necessity, Banff National Park restricted personal vehicle traffic access to Moraine Lake during summer months. The decision was made in part to address immense congestion and to mitigate the environmental impact of that car usage. Instead, visitors were told to access the park via Parks Canada shuttles, public transit or tour companies.
“Approximately 5,000 personal vehicles a day were turned away from Moraine Lake during the summer of 2022. This is compared to only 900 vehicles per day that were successful at accessing the Moraine Lake parking lot,” says Francois Masse, Parks Canada’s Superintendent for the Lake Louise, Yoho and Kootenay Field Unit.
Visitors didn’t let the restriction stop their exploration of the town and the park’s famous sites. In 2023, ridership on Roam, the local public transit, grew by 60 per cent over the year prior, and Parks Canada shuttles had a 29 per cent increase. Today along with Moraine Lake, Roam also serves Lake Louise, Johnston Canyon, Lake Minnewanka, Two Jack Lake and the Banff Gondola – some of the most popular sites in the park that have either no or very limited vehicle access.
“Most hotels in Banff also give transit passes to their guests so they can leave their cars parked at the hotel,” says Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno. She adds: “People staying in campgrounds appreciate that they can leave their RVs and trailers in the campground, and take Roam transit for free into town for supplies, meals, museums and tourist services, or take transit on to all the other destinations in the national park.”
In other places, tourists are given incentives to ditch their cars. This summer, the tourism board in Copenhagen, Denmark’s capital city, launched a pilot project called CopenPay. A collection of attractions, such as museums, restaurants and CopenHill, the ski slope on top of an energy building, rewarded green actions, like cycling or taking public transit, with free ice cream, drinks or extended access.
CopenPay is a new pilot program that rewards tourists visiting Copenhagen for cycling or taking public transit with perks like free ice cream.SUPPLIED
And then destinations like Penticton, B.C., which is blessed with several indoor and outdoor experiences concentrated within a small area, are simply inspiring folks to see their non-car journeys as the purpose of visiting.
Tucked on a roughly seven-kilometre stretch between Okanagan and Skaha Lakes, you can walk from end to end in 90 minutes, less if cycling. Two years ago, the local tourism board launched its Fuel Free … Almost information campaign to draw attention to all the things that can be done in town without the use of a car (the Almost references the fact that visitors are flying to the town and using aviation fuel to do so).
“We have the lakes, the beaches, the channel that goes between Okanagan Lake and Skaha Lake, things like the Kettle Valley Rail Trail and hiking trails,” says Thom Tischik, executive director at Visit Penticton. Other big attractions include the area’s culinary scene, craft breweries and wineries, experiences that you might not want to have to drive back to the hotel from.
Visitors have taken to car-free travel during their stay. “When I first arrived in Penticton about seven years ago, we had one place that rented bikes. Now we have around five or six that rent bicycles and e-bikes,” says Tischik. “We also have adventure companies offering kayak rentals and kayak tours.” One such company, Hoodoo Adventures, combines the best of the town with experiences like its e-bike tour with a picnic and a kayak and wine tour.
Some of Penticton’s messaging includes the pain of having to deal with a car – traffic, parking, paying for gas. Even though I was relying on taxis in L.A. those same issues were what prompted me to ditch them in favour of transit, walking and the like.
I might have saved a bit of time had I opted for a car, but I was on holiday, there was no rush. What I lost in efficiency I made up in relaxation. And the slower pace of alternate modes of transport showed me parts of the city I wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Multiple benefits all for the price of a subway ride.