Transportation brings govt's together

Municipal and regional governments from across the Central Okanagan have formed a new partnership focused on regional, sustainable transportation interests.

Regional District of Central Okanagan board chair, Robert Hobson with mayors of Kelowna, West Kelowna, Peachland and Lake Country along with Westbank First Nation, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the goal of working together to identify and address long-term transportation issues.

"Transportation issues are top of mind for all residents across the Central Okanagan. They are also an important part of local government official community plans and our Central Okanagan Regional Growth Strategy, which is being updated," says Hobson.

"This new partnership brings all of our interests to the table in dealing efficiently and effectively with transportation matters, so that we can find common solutions and apply them from one end of the region to the other."

Among the benefits identified in this new partnership:

• The establishment of unified regional policies and strategic transportation plans
• Improve responsiveness to Central Okanagan residents and local elected officials
• Potentially reduced costs through regional efficiencies, reduced duplication, sharing of resources, survey data, best practices and funding
• Providing a means to measure and monitor regional benefits and implications of transportation decisions
• Creates a forum and collective voice to effectively communicate with senior governments.

Staff from each local government will work together in crafting more formal agreements for the; structure, funding and operation of the sustainable transportation partnership.