More people using transit to get to work

More people in Halton are using public transit to get to work, rising to 11% of commuters up from 4% a decade ago.Oakville has the highest percentage of transit use at 17%, followed by Burlington at 9%, Milton at 8.3% and Halton Hills at 3.6%.Carpooling, walking and cycling as methods to get to work have decreased in Halton, from 9% in 2006 to 6% in 2016 (carpooling) and from 6% in 2006 to 5% in 2016 (walking, cycling, taxi, other).Driving to work is still the preferred form of transportation by a long shot: in 2016, 78% of residents drove to work, a slight decrease from 81% in 2006.Burlington residents also have shorter commute times compared to the rest of Halton, with 60% of residents spending half an hour or less getting to work, compared to 40% for Milton, 47% for Halton Hills, and 48% for Oakville.This information was provided by Community Development Halton based on an analysis of 2016 Statistics Canada data. You can read more in the Community Lens #134, Journey to Work 2016For additional information contact data@cdhalton.ca or 905.632.1975My Take: This information reinforces the need for additional investments in public transit, including over holidays like Christmas and New Years Day, when many residents continue to work in essential services. I’m lucky enough to be able to walk to work, but given the distances most people travel to get to work, cycling and walking aren’t viable options for most residents. So the best way to get people out of their vehicles is to have regular, frequent and predictable transit service that gets people where they need to go.