An Innovative Plug-In Hybrid Carsharing Project in the Outaouais Region

At the end of September, the Conseil régional de l'environnement et du développement durable de l'Outaouais (CREDDO) officially launched Horizons Partagés, a project to promote sustainable mobility in the Outaouais municipalities of Chelsea and La Pêche. A total of 16 plug-in hybrid vehicles will be deployed, including 12 in Chelsea and 4 in La Pêche. The vehicles will be available for use via the Communauto platform. They will be installed at various strategic locations, in new real estate projects and at city halls.

This carsharing project is part of the development of new, denser neighborhoods with multi-dwelling buildings and local shops. It contributes to the desire of these municipalities to reduce the use of private cars and the parking spaces devoted to them. An active mobility axis consisting of safe bicycle paths also adds to this vision of sustainable mobility.

A unique collective project

Horizons Partagés is a collective project unique in Québec. It was born of a concerted effort by a number of players: private partners such as real estate developers, two rural municipalities and CREDDO. Communauto is also contributing its expertise and enabling the use of its carsharing platform.

For the participating municipalities, this project provides a unique opportunity to offer a new service to their citizens, to encourage active and sustainable mobility within their communities.

For Communauto, it is an opportunity to find the winning recipe for extending carsharing to other municipalities.

CREDDO is responsible for managing the fleet of vehicles, a task that will be greatly facilitated by the involvement of local players such as Taxi Loyal, which will maintain and service the vehicles.

For its part, Équiterre will produce an implementation guide and promote the project, in the hope that Horizons Partagés will be replicated throughout Québec.

Reducing parking spaces

Like several other Québec municipalities, Chelsea has lowered the minimum parking requirement in its latest urban plan. It is now permitted to offer only one parking space per unit, instead of the previous two. This change reduces the amount of public space devoted to cars in new real estate developments. By reducing the need to own a vehicle, the carsharing offer of the Horizons Partagés project will reduce the need for unconstrained parking spaces. Around 150 parking spaces will be available for other uses by residents. This reduces the potential number of heat islands as well.

Horizons Partagés illustrates how the cooperation and mobilization of several local players can lead to innovative and concrete solutions to improve sustainable mobility and reduce environmental impact, even in rural areas.

The Running Electric campaign is proud to provide financial support for the realization of this exciting project, with financial backing from the Québec government as part of the 2030 Plan for a Green Economy.

Photos Credits

CREDDO and Agatha et Liam Rowland (Studio 1520)