CAA supports various initiatives:

Recognizing the importance of mobility to Canadians and our desire to preserve the environment, CAA supports practical and economically feasible measures to conserve energy and reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, including the following:

• Investment by the government, private sector, and auto industry in research and development related to advanced vehicle technologies such as fuel cell, hybrid vehicles, and other technologies;
• Government regulation requiring that motor fuels meet government standards in order to reduce environmental impact;
• Intelligent roads incorporating traffic and information management systems to optimize traffic flow and reduce congestion;
• Government programs that offer incentives to offset the current cost disadvantages of alternate vehicles, stimulate demand for such vehicles, and promote and accelerate the development and introduction of more fuel efficient vehicles;
• Availability of a multi-modal transportation system that provides motorists with choices and options;
• Public education and awareness campaigns that help motorists make more informed decisions about their vehicle purchases and transportation choices.

Better roads and highways play a role in our environment:

The condition of Canada’s highways also plays a role in mitigating the environmental impact of motor vehicles.

Our National Highway System (NHS) is the backbone of Canada’s transportation system. It accounts for 3% of Canada’s 900,000 km of interconnected roads and highways, yet carries 25% of our nation’s traffic. It is also congested from inadequate capacity, subject to ad-hoc maintenance and is out-of-date, all of which lead to reduced fuel efficiency, increasing greenhouse gases and other emissions.

Reducing congestion and improving the flow of traffic on the NHS would have a positive effect on the environment, including reducing fuel consumption by as much as 236 million litres each year.

Initiatives such as Intelligent Transportation Systems, which improve traffic flow, and more frequent resurfacing of the NHS have also both been identified by the National Transportation Table on Climate Change as ‘most promising measures’ to reduce greenhouse gases. CAA agrees.

Suggested Reading:

Government of Canada One Tonne Challenge: http://www.climatechange.gc.ca/onetonne/english/index.asp

Government of Canada , Climate Change:
http://www.climatechange.gc.ca

Environment Canada:
http://www.ec.gc.ca/envhome.html