Julia Longpre reached out to the Buzzer team to tell us about her transit-going family. Although they can drive, they choose not to.

Why? Because they love transit!

Walking, taking the bus or SkyTrain is this family’s preferred way of getting around the region for work and play.

Julia has used the transit system in Vancouver for over 20 years and seen it grow while living in various places from East to West.

We sat down with Julia and her son Tate to find out more about why they choose and love transit:

Where do you take transit?

We take the SkyTrain to visit family in Surrey. We take the bus to school and I can’t wait for Tate to be able to take it by himself! It’s an important skill for kids to have. We like to head to Pacific Spirit Park and Spanish Banks beach and all over the city by bus.

What do you feel are the benefits of not owning a car?

Not owning a car was a big reason why I was able to stay home with my family. A car, parking and gas cost a lot of money each month.

I’m also a big environmentalist and I don’t feel guilty when I get out and get on public transit because I know it’s helping the environment. Plus the ease. It’s just stress free, no worrying. I love being able to sit there and just look out the window.

What would you like to see change on transit?

I don’t see a lot of kids Tate’s age on the bus. You see little kids, babies with nannies and it seems to me that really young people are taking transit and then the older people. We need to get more families on transit, that middle age group, so when the kids grow up, they’re more likely to be transit users.

Yes, like most people, I’ve missed the occasional bus or had a bus be full, but I really have no complaints about what the system is now. We just need to get more cars off the road. It makes for a much better city! We need to change the outdated attitude that public transit is somehow a less desirable option than driving.

**While Tate couldn’t decide on his favourite part of transit, he did let us know that his uncle is a bus operator and he likes being on his route!**

Stay tuned for other awesome I Love Transit stories from riders like Julia and Tate throughout the week!

Author: Adrienne Coling