Pseudo-Environmentalists Holding Back Winnipeg's Progress

As I age and as the years go by in the Internet discussions with others over what to do with Winnipeg's transportation problem, I've gained some insight as to what is keeping central Winnipeg from becoming a more lively, vibrant urban place.

There are various "factions" at work, who seem to want to stop all good progress towards this end. One of them I discuss in this piece.

Let's start off with a definition of what an environmentalist is. From Wictionary:

One who works to protect the biosphere from misuse through such measures as ecosystem protection, waste reduction and pollution prevention

But when it comes to mass transportation, they would throw out this ideal, and, in their senseless desire for "cheap" transportation, advocate for a much less desirable option for Winnipeg.

1. They claim to be environmentalists, but advocate for things that are not -- diesel bus BRT
2. They claim to be progressive, but are anti-progressive when it comes to downtown development and "alternative transportation"
3. Want, in effect, a rural/country-like setting
4. They advocate for "cheap" transportation, ie. cycling, Bus "Rapid Transit".
5. They're generally recognized as the children of the Hippies, or are from the Hippie generation themselves
6. During the rapid transit debate of 2004 news reporters referred to the pro-BRT camp as "transit advocates". Nothing could be further from the truth, as BRT will ultimately hurt transit ridership and the environment, not help these two things
   

The thing is that I like cycling myself. As I write this, it's early January, and it'll be at least another three months before the temperatures are warm enough for cycling in this city. I absolutely love cycling. Cycle commute to my parent's home twice a week and rode to Grant Park shopping centre to catch a movie. Last year I participated in three Critical Mass Winnipeg rides (August - October).

I'm not against the environment. Far from it. I recycle most of my garbage. I give away to others some of the things I don't need anymore.

But the difference between myself and the Hippie environmentalists is that I acknowledge that a rail vehicle is better than a bus for moving large numbers of people in a city.