Mayor stands by city's QED data, despite issues raised in internal emails
Message from NCC manager mentioned 'methodological errors' in Ottawa report
Dan Taekema · CBC News
Posted: Aug 24, 2023 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago
Ottawa's mayor is doubling down on city data showing limited pedestrian and cyclist use of the Queen Elizabeth Driveway, despite internal emails in which the National Capital Commission suggests "miscalculations" were made.
"I stand by what I've said all along," Mark Sutcliffe told reporters following Wednesday's council meeting, adding he believes the statistics were "collected effectively."
His comments follow a report by PressProgress, quoting communications obtained thought a freedom of information request, where the NCC raised issues with numbers gathered by the city on "active use" of a two-kilometre stretch of the parkway.
The city provided a copy of the internal emails to CBC Wednesday evening.
In a May 1 email, a manager with the NCC said the organization's staff had reviewed a city report published in April about impacts of the QED closure.
The manager wrote that some parts of the report "should be re-examined" and provided a list of general topics to discuss, including "methodological errors," potential "miscalculations" and a "misrepresentation" of the active user analysis.
Phil Landry, the city's director of traffic services, said in an email to CBC that staff responded to the NCC saying the document was an "operational report" and "limited to a reporting and analysis strictly of the data collected."
The city stands by the report and its methodology, he said.
The NCC did not respond directly to a question asking which specific issues its staff raised about the city's reporting.
Instead, a spokesperson wrote in an email that nearly 74,000 people have visited the stretch of QED since May and that discussions with the city are ongoing.
The NCC said it's also gathering additional data and is carrying out a public survey during the current season, which will inform the future of its active use initiatives.
The program sees both lanes of the QED along the Rideau Canal closed to motor vehicles between Fifth Avenue and Somerset Street from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. from July 1 to Sept. 4.
From May 31 to June 25 and Sept. 9 to Oct. 9 the shutdown only happens on weekends and holiday Mondays.
Sutcliffe said he isn't against closures on weekends, evenings or holidays, but he does disagree with the NCC on the exact schedule.
Questioned Wednesday about the city's data, he took aim at the Crown corporation.
When the city was first approached about closing part of the parkway, the mayor said, staff told the NCC it would be "problematic for traffic" — especially during peak times — but it went ahead with the closure anyway.
"I would ask the NCC why there has not been more cooperation on this," he said.
Debate around the QED hit another gear after Sutcliffe posted a video on social media on Aug. 9.
In it, he stood on the road and told the camera very few cyclists and pedestrians were taking advantage of the closure, and the pathway along the canal could easily accommodate that traffic.
The result of the closure to cars, Sutcliffe said, is congestion on neighbourhood streets that makes it difficult for drivers — including emergency vehicles.
"Think about the number of cars that are displaced every single minute so that one or two cyclists can use the road instead of the pathway," he says in the video.
In his comments Wednesday, the mayor lamented about the state of the conversation around the QED, saying he's in favour of creating more cyclist and pedestrian-friendly areas.
"I think there has unfortunately become a bit of a ... cars versus bicycle element to this discussion. It's not about that at all," he told reporters. "The discussion is about where is the best place to create more space for cyclists."
Neil Saravanamuttoo, who helped promote a mass bike ride on the QED following Sutcliffe's video, said he uses the stretch of road nearly every day and sees plenty of cyclists, joggers and wheelchair users taking advantage of the active use program.
He questioned whether the city is undercounting in its data and asked why staff have seemingly refused to work with the NCC to get the most accurate data possible.
Saravanamuttoo, who is also deputy director of a non-profit founded by Sutcliffe's main opponent in the 2022 election, hopes the program continues.
"I hope the NCC is going to stand their ground on this one," he said. "This has become such a valuable space for people."
With files from Guy Quenneville
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottaw...-ncc-1.6944962
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