Planning our communities determines the distances we need to travel and the transportation modes we use to visit friends, shop, and commute to work or school. Vehicles are the leading source of carbon pollution and a major source of health-harming air contaminants in Surrey. The most effective way to reduce this pollution is to reduce the distance we need to travel in the first place.
Decades ago, Surrey was designed as a suburb, in a time when getting around by car was the norm. As a result, many homes remain far from essential services and amenities. Today, the City is focusing on creating complete neighbourhoods with mixed-use development, more affordable and energy- efficient multi-unit homes, and boosting employment opportunities in rapid transit areas such as City Centre. The City’s Official Community Plan and Zoning Bylaw are two key regulations that direct where new growth will occur and its forms. Pending and future updates to these plans provide an ideal opportunity to enhance livability and reduce carbon pollution as the city grows.
For example, the City can encourage infill development, which involves increasing housing density in existing single-detached neighbourhoods within walking distance of the Frequent Transit Network, such as laneway houses, multi-plexes, row houses, townhouses, low- to mid-rise apartments, etc. Concentrating growth in areas that are already serviced with infrastructure, instead of undeveloped areas, also helps to protect ecosystems.