Transportation

Arbutus Road Pathway

It took the better part of a year of meetings to get permits from BC Hydro and sponsorship by the Regional District. We talked to all the homeowners who bordered on the route. Some were supportive from day one. Others needed convincing. In the end, everyone was on-side.

The projected cost for the path, if done by a private builder, was estimated to be approximately $175,000. Which would have meant a lot of cupcake fundraisers. And we didn’t much like baking cupcakes.

So we spent less than that. A lot less. By using our own hand-tools, on-site materials, donated wood and volunteer labour, the pathway cost only $7,500.00. Some of that money came from local businesses and Quadra non-profits but most of the money was donated by the pathway workers themselves. At no point did anyone have to fund-raise.

We were lucky to have a retired engineer in our team. He became our project manager. He designed and built the bridges, determined the pathway route and other technical details. But mostly what we needed was muscle power and we came up with a simple way to organize it.

Two of us committed to working at the site every Sunday from 9:00-11:00. Rain or Shine. Volunteers showed up whenever they could. Some did one or two Sunday mornings. Others became regulars. Every hour of labour helped. If someone couldn’t make it, no worries. They could show up the next Sunday or the one after that. Everybody did what they could. Volunteers ranged in age from seven to seventy-five and over the course of the project more than sixty people were involved.

At first there were just a few of us each Sunday. “Slow but steady” was our motto. But over time more people heard about it and came by to lend a hand. The project gained momentum. Sixteen months after we hauled our first wheelbarrow of dirt, the project was completed.

Arbutus is a useful and attractive pathway. In the winter and spring, a creek flows beside it. People use it regularly for recreation and commuting. It requires little maintenance. A clogged ditch or fallen branch gets dealt with by whoever notices it first. Recently a lovely bench has appeared at the half way point, for those who want to sit and enjoy the view.

Arbutus Pathway is not the answer to all of Quadra’s transportation challenges. But it’s a start. Now if we could just get a West Road bike lane underway….