What we want is clear: access to transportation for all.
These days, travelling medium to long distances is essential for work, grocery shopping, picking up children from school and daycare, visiting grandparents at the CHSLD, going to the dentist, helping friends move, connecting with green spaces, and more. In this context, transportation must be defended. It should not be reduced to a commodity or a source of profit: it's a necessity.
What we want is clear: free public transit, day and night. A public transit network that serves all regions. Schedules that allow for reasonable waiting times—no more buses that run only on the hour. Efficient travel from the suburbs to the city center, as well as within and between the suburbs. Collectivized transit offering the population reliable and equitable access to this essential service. Safe and extensive active transportation networks. We want priority given to pedestrians, streetcars, trains, buses, subways, bicycles, inline skates, scooters and walkers.
What we want is clear: we no longer want to choose between overpriced housing and living two hours from work. We no longer want to live in heat islands because the only affordable housing is surrounded by parking lots. We don’t want to ride our bikes dressed up like Christmas trees with lights because drivers don’t check when they turn right. We don’t want to visit our friends in hospitals because they’ve been hit by cars. We don’t want to see white bikes commemorating cyclists all over town. We want to open our windows in the summer without hearing the roar of engines we could never afford. We want to breathe air that's not filled with exhaust.
What we want is clear: we want to knock the engine off its pedestal. Yes, we’ll need to reclaim space for public and active transport. Yes, we’ll have to take back the space currently occupied by tanks in our cities. Criticism of cars seems to have become widespread. We hear everywhere that the government spends more per user on road infrastructure than on public transit, or that bike paths improve people's health and save them time. We’re talking about turning this collective awakening into concrete actions—new bus stops, metros, streetcars, trains, and intercity buses. Let’s tackle both the climate and social crises by demanding access to transportation for all. Let’s reclaim space in our cities.
In short, we want the street.
It’s going to be a tough fight, because the auto industry lobbies are powerful and governments are determined to save it. The Northvolt car battery plant, financed with $7 billion from federal and provincial governments, is proof of this. We’re in for a hard battle, but so are our comrades. Free, accessible, and extensive public transit is far from enough to guarantee egalitarian societies. Even after achieving it, many would still live in filthy, overpriced tenements or get arrested at 3 a.m. for sleeping on a park bench. Many would still have to eat McDonald's because it’s cheaper than vegetables. People would continue to be bombed in the early hours of the morning. Women would still be sexually assaulted, mansplained to daily, and manspread on the subway. Trans and queer people would continue to face violence and job discrimination. Racialized people would still be stopped for no reason and mistreated by police. That’s why it’s important not to fight in silos, but to fight for public transport in ways that ease the burden on our comrades. Throughout this journal, several articles will explore the connections between transportation and other themes such as urbanism, housing, land use and occupation, colonialism, systemic racism, capitalist exploitation, and ableism.
In short, we want the street.
And much more besides.