Submitted by Jen Antony, Retire Your Ride Coordinator, Saskatchewan Environmental Society
A Smart Car might not be the top pick as an ideal vehicle for a summer-long road trip but one student is proving compact has an impact when the road takes you across Saskatchewan.
"We're traversing the province telling people about Retire Your Ride as part of the Saskatchewan Summer Road Trip," says Chris Ferguson, Outreach Representative with Retire Your Ride. Ferguson passed through Yorkton on Friday.
'Curby' the Smart Car is our vehicle of choice for this trip. A car is really the only way to cover the kind of ground we need to so we chose something that gets great gas mileage, and Curby does! It's a two seater so it's smaller but that encourages us to pack light, which is also great for fuel mileage!"
Letting Saskatchewan know that Retire Your Ride - Canada's Vehicle Recycling Program is giving up to $3300 worth of rewards for 1995 and older vehicles has found Ferguson in some interesting conversations about transportation.
"We've found people sure like talking about cars. It seems few other material items are so close to the heart, and why not?" says Ferguson. "Cars have meant freedom and a chance to expand our horizons on our own terms, unfettered by schedules or inclement weather. They make work easier and free up time for other things. But they also cost a tremendous amount of money to run and maintain, and they've led us to plan our communities in ways that make biking and walking often undesirable and dangerous. In many ways the car has made us freer, but in some it has made us more dependent - on it."
While recognizing that cars are a necessity of life for some people, especially in rural areas, Ferguson says we can all do something to reduce the pollution vehicles cause.
"It can be as simple as packing light, checking your tire pressure regularly or committing to turn your vehicle off if you're stopped for more than 10 seconds," explains Ferguson. "Just 45 seconds of idling uses about the same amount of fuel it takes to drive a kilometre. There's no sense in wasting gas when you're not even moving."
In Saskatchewan from Ontario as a summer student working with Retire Your Ride, Ferguson enjoys the fact that the program isn't moving past communities on the way to big tourist attractions. By visiting Saskatchewan's small towns, Ferguson is seeing the world differently this summer.
"You certainly see the world a bit differently when travelling a little closer to the earth," explains Ferguson. "We stop and stay awhile. And we've met some people who don't have much choice. Passing through Gravelbourg, I met them Dick and Arlete from Sacramento, California who are both about 60 years old and spending their retirement biking around North America. When you're only making about 70 kilometres a day and are sometimes forced to hunker down on account of rain, you end up discovering neat little places like Lafleche, Gravelbourg or Mossbank, and the people who call them home. In Moose Jaw we met a woman who owns a car but takes the insurance off in the summer and leaves it parked. It's a way to save money, and she said she finds she notices more about her city when travelling by bike or on foot."
"Without any wheels at all, you really have lots of time to think and appreciate every single inch of territory you cover," says Ferguson. "I met Simon Gervais of Montreal in Swift Current. He was taking a break for a few days amid his walk across Canada. That's right, walk. He started in mid-April on Vancouver Island and ran into a bit of late snow passing through the mountains. He figures he'll make it to Toronto by winter, which he'll spend in Montreal before heading back to Toronto to continue his odyssey. I got the sense from Simon that every piece of ground he covered was something special, even sacred, because he did it with his own two feet - and a walking stick."
"There's still something special about vehicles," offers Ferguson. "I met a fellow in Swift Current who bought a brand-new Chevy truck in 1956, and has cared for it lovingly ever since. You can bet he's not letting that baby go. He's probably known her longer than he's known his wife. But some cars stand the test of time better than others. At the same fair a lady referred to her vehicle as a 1990 "P.O.S." It's a ball and chain she'd be more than happy to ditch."
Set up at the Yorkton Exhibition and having given a talk at the 5th Ave Cup and Saucer Friday night, Ferguson will continue to travel the province asking Saskatchewan to consider committing to healthier transportation choices, including retiring their 1995 and older vehicles, if the choice fits their lifestyle.
"What we're talking about is the basics of the Retire Your Ride program into opening a dialogue on the subject of sustainable transportation," says Chris.
"What is going on in Saskatchewan now and what do we want to see happen in Saskatchewan for our future? It's been a great time so far, getting to know folks around the province and letting them get to know about what we do. But it's really just got started and there are lots more places to go and people to see. I hope I'll see you down the road!"
