Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) has joined the Chamber’s “Employers Take Action for Sustainable Mobility” project to raise awareness and mobilize the university community about the issue and to continue introducing sustainable mobility measures.
The importance of sustainable mobility for UQAM
Climate change is the issue of the day that no one can ignore. This is why it is important for UQAM to continue introducing sustainable mobility measures, because the university is a significant generator of travel to downtown Montréal. It mobilizes over 41,500 students and 5,300 employees. UQAM is a city within a city!
In 2014, UQAM conducted a study to identify the travel profile and habits of the university community: close to 83% of the community supported sustainable mobility by using public transit to get to campus. That said, UQAM needs to continue to improve the offer of alternative modes of transportation to get to work.
Measures introduced on campus
UQAM recently acquired its first electric vehicle for the buildings services department and for the division that handles internal mail. This will be a chance to test this type of vehicle and assess the needs of buildings services as the current vehicle fleet ages.
Additionally, around 100 bike racks were added on campus to encourage the community to bike to UQAM. Showers are also available for cyclists. At the beginning of each season, i.e. twice a year, UQAM management and its communications team have information booths to encourage people to use active transportation.
UQAM is designing an application to evaluate the amount of greenhouse gas produced to propose solutions to substantially reduce emissions.
If your company or organization wants to get involved in a sustainable mobility initiative, UQAM suggests creating a committee formed of all stakeholders in the issue. This committee will enable a clear, effective diagnosis of your organization’s transportation needs.