Elliot Lake's public transportation system was the centre of focus for a study conducted in 2022. An online presentation Jan. 31, will use the Elliot Lake findings as examples. It is hosted by researcher, Rachel Barber, a Queen’s University PhD student.
Barber published the study, May 2023. Aging but not Forgotten: An Analysis of Older Adult Health Care Access in Elliot Lake.
The online Zoom webinar is described, “How can small cities and rural communities ensure their population maintains access to essential services as they age? Rachel Barber shares the findings of her assessment of health care and public transportation services in the community of Elliot Lake, Canada’s most severely shrinking city and home to one of the nation’s oldest populations.”
“Key takeaways for small, rural, and shrinking communities will be discussed, including the development of the Older Persons Walking and Transit Audit (OPWATA) tool to measure the age-friendliness of walkways and public transportation.”
The webinar, open to registration from citizens, comes at a time when council has this topic in view.
Webinar is timely
On July 10, 2023, Elliot Lake City Council passed a resolution for a transit study for $57,588 plus HST. The corresponding staff report noted, “Local constituents in varying stages of life heavily rely upon the Elliot Lake transit system.”
“The ultimate goal of the review is to improve access to transit as well as the quality of routes and associated infrastructure.”
A month later, at the council meeting of Aug. 14, 2023, a staff report “recommended that we offer a one-year contract extension for specialized transit delivery. This allows staff realize the recently approved and awarded transit study project to have complete in-depth review of the entire transit system. Staff can then review the recommendations of the study to inform the scope of work defined in a forthcoming request for proposals to provide to the next multi-year contract for the operation of specialized transit services.”
The report also informs, “The City of Elliot Lake was approved for over $900,000 in funding through the ICIP transit fund, which can be used for a review of the entire transit system as well as the purchase of new shelters, busses and potentially the implementation of a smart card system.”
At the Aug. 14, 2023 meeting, council approved the staff recommendation to extend the specialized transit delivery contract for one year.
Registration information about the webinar can be found here.