This text is part of the special Environment section
While many shopping centers are forcing consumers to use their vehicles to get to the outskirts of municipalities, many experts are proposing to reduce our energy footprint by revitalizing the main arteries of downtown areas. A revitalization that could benefit both customers, merchants… and the planet.
Concrete of roads, creation of heat islands in parking lots, construction of new buildings… energy costs are diverse, according to Christian Petit, director of special projects at Main Streets. “That’s not counting all the costs that it generates for communities. The more you spread out, the more expensive the infrastructure costs,” he explains.
On average, consumers drive 21 kilometers to the mall, study finds Rethinking urban logistics for local mobility and consumption choices of Coop Carbone carried out on behalf of Solon last September. For in-store purchases, the car journey accounts for 80% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, explains Caroline Marie, strategic advisor in sustainable mobility at Coop Carbone.
But people who shop on the outskirts, that is to say outside their city center and main arteries, are not the only ones to generate energy expenditure. E-commerce also has consequences. If delivery as such reduces the impact of GHGs by pooling items brought to their destination, the same is not true for express delivery. The environmental footprint of such a mode of transport is almost tripled compared to standard delivery, according to Protect yourself.
“By always wanting more consumer goods in less than 24 hours, an hour, ten minutes, the trucks run empty and we completely explode GHG emissions,” explains Ms.me Married.
Enhance town centers and main streets
In order to encourage purchases in local shops, both the business community and the political powers and consumers have to make an effort, believes Christian Savard, general manager of Vivre en Ville. “First, as a citizen, it is to have the reflex to think about our commercial streets. It’s one of the strongest things we can do: reduce our kilometers,” he says.
Collectively, this amounts to investing in the hearts of villages, commercial arteries and city centres. “That means making them user-friendly, interesting. Also, perhaps, to say no to the next one who will want to settle on the edge of a motorway interchange, at the risk that everyone is obliged to take their car over long distances, ”he pleads. Instead, he advises giving priority to the renovation of existing buildings.
For his part, the CEO of the Federation of Quebec Chambers of Commerce (FCCQ), Charles Milliard, believes that the promotion of city centers does not necessarily mean refusing to develop projects on the outskirts of cities. “We need to have measures that promote the return to city centers rather than coercive measures to prevent the holding ofoutlets “, he believes.
On June 6, the government of François Legault unveiled its National Policy on Architecture and Land Use Planning (PNAAT), which specifies that Quebec must “direct growth towards environments already endowed with infrastructure and public services, located in the heart of our villages and towns, thus limiting urban sprawl”.
“This is an opportunity to revitalize our city centers and the hearts of villages. We also want to have a strategy to promote sustainable mobility. Having a built heritage that is much better valued and that will encourage businesses to use them, ”said Mr. Milliard.
He also wants the government to set an example by setting up public organizations in city centers.
For the president of the Regroupement des société de développement commercial (SDC) du Québec, Gena Déziel, improving the main arteries involves, among other things, special projects. These include the pedestrianization of streets, as is particularly the case in Montreal and Trois-Rivières, but also spaces for terraces and urban lounges.
She cites the example of the Saint-Lau collective terrace in 2020 in Trois-Rivières, where restaurant meals were delivered by bike, or the Filière 13 event, an augmented reality game, in downtown Alma.
Moreover, the pandemic has shown that the closure of main arteries to cars creates attractiveness, observes Caroline Marie. “We saw it in Montreal: merchants, initially reluctant to pedestrianize the streets, found that it was ultimately a gain for them,” she illustrates.
As for the public transit offer, Mr. Savard concedes for his part that smaller municipalities can struggle to offer such a service. But even in rural areas, it is possible to consider access for users who prefer walking or cycling, he says. “When we are in a small community, if we go to consume in our city center, we will generally travel less distance, even if it is by car,” he pleads.
He therefore calls on traders to think about their location. “Why would we go more on the outskirts? There are plenty of good reasons to go downtown. »