No need for a vehicle to get around; it is enough to tame the pleasure of walking, of slowness and of observation. This is the philosophy adopted by many people who are pedestrians by choice for the majority of their transportation needs.
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Among them is Montrealer Benoit Giguère, who has been doing around 90% of his trips on foot for 25 years now. He was already walking a lot before, but he sold his car outright when he moved to the Cité du multimedia (between Old Montreal and Griffintown) in 1997.
Today, he walks 50 minutes each time he goes to his office near the Lionel-Groulx station, where he works as vice-president in a marketing agency. And it’s the same thing to come back in the evening!
“I get up earlier and I have time to think, to start my day in my head,” says the 62-year-old man, who does not see this journey as a waste of time at all. “I wouldn’t be a winner if I came back faster by metro to go do 45 minutes on the treadmill! It’s deadly boring, you’re lined up like cattle,” he said.
And no, walking does not confine him to a few shops near his home. “If I taste like a good black pudding, I’m going to walk [environ 40 minutes] to the Atwater market. It also happens to me to pick up books in a bookstore in Verdun, a big hour’s walk away,” says the man who is nevertheless a supporter of the concept of “Ville 15 minutes”, according to which in town, the majority of services should be accessible within a 15 minute walk from the residences.
He still owns a folding bike which he uses on occasion, and does not hesitate to use public transit or a car in certain cases, for example when he has to make bulky purchases, when he is tight in the weather or when it is very cold. However, he makes it a point of honor not to “beg for lifts»!
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not boring
Even if he listens to little music or podcasts, his walks are far from boring in a dynamic city like Montreal, where he never takes exactly the same route. “I think it’s the best way to discover a city, with all the accidental encounters that you do less by bike and not at all by car. Same thing often with public transport, where you simply go from point A to point B”, he observes.
The director general of Piétons Québec, Sandrine Cabana-Degani, agrees. “There are all sorts of things that we can experience during our travels, and which make us want to slow down. See flowers, meet a neighbor, animals, perhaps, on his way. It’s good to give yourself that time, to have a great travel experience and to take advantage of what you can see and feel; take ownership of your living environment, discover a park, a new business…”, she lists.
Benoit’s walking habits have also allowed him over the years to observe the evolution of neighborhoods in real time (whether gentrification or demographic changes) before the media deal with these phenomena. He remembers, for example, having witnessed the flourishing of Chinatown, the development of the Old Port and of course that of Griffintown and the Lachine Canal, which were not at all sympathetic when he arrived in the neighborhood.
Photo QMI Agency, Joël Lemay
Benoit is from Quebec, and although his father and his five brothers have always loved cars, that was not the case. He had a few “bazous”, but was not attached to it.
For him, the lifestyle that comes with walking is far preferable. “It’s medicine, in a way, and an art of living, of walking. It is to accept the slowness.
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Tips to get started
We asked Sabrina Cabana-Degani, Executive Director of Piétons Québec, and Benoit Giguère for their best advice on how to start commuting on foot. Here they are.
- First, choose only one trip per week and replace it with walking, ideally at a time when the weather is nice, we are tempted, and the distance to be covered is not too long (we want to put every chance of our side!).
- Leave earlier than the departure time which would allow us to be there right on time, so as not to feel rushed.
- If you want to go to work on foot, try it for the first time on a day off, so you can test this movement without having the pressure to arrive on time.
- Develop various routes to be able to choose according to your mood of the day: the most direct, the one that passes through shops, the most beautiful, etc.
- Combine modes of transport, for example going to work by metro, but returning on foot.
- Download podcasts to listen to while walking.
- Get a wheeled bag if you plan to do a lot of shopping on foot.
- In the longer term, equip yourself well, especially for winter or when the weather is less pleasant. The most interesting objects to consider are:
- Tissues.
- A waterproof coat.
- Not too massive winter boots (their weight can become annoying).
- Lightweight, waterproof snow pants.
- Crampons.
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