Earlier this month, Access Planning staff Andrew Devlin and Tamim Raad were thrilled to work with the UK Department for Business and Trade to support and facilitate a delegation of senior Canadian transportation professionals visiting London for the Future Cities and Net Zero Programme.
Access had the privilege of leading a seminar on Canada’s mobility landscape at the beautiful and historic Canada House, and the opportunity to meet with colleagues at Transport for London, the UK Department for Transport (DfT), Oxfordshire County Council, Network Rail, as well as numerous vendors and service providers to learn about the diverse actions and initiatives they are advancing to decarbonize cities and prepare for new mobility systems and modes through innovation, cooperation, and collaboration. We also promoted the programs, initiatives, and interests of Canada's major urban transit and transportation agencies like TransLink, Metrolinx, Agence de mobilité durable, Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain, Toronto Parking Authority, and City of Vancouver.
Other highlights included taking in the release of the new ‘Decarbonising Transport’ report during a breakfast at the London Transport Museum, being given an amazing tour of the Paddington Elizabeth Line Station by station architects Christian Bocci and Alex Kirkwood of Weston Williamson + Partners.
All in all, it was an amazing 5-day trip, with exceptional mutual learning, exchange of ideas and networking. The ideas and discussions born out of this event will be fruitful to the future of transit and planning in both regions. Many thanks to the Department for Business and Trade, for putting together a great programme, and to Global Affairs Canada, for inviting Access Planning to support leading this delegation.