That’s lower than some cities, such as Windsor, Ontario, with a 90 per cent car commute rate, St. John’s at 88.2 per cent, Regina at 87.7 per cent and Saskatoon at 86.1 per cent. About 10 per cent of Edmonton commuters travelled to work by public transit, five per cent walked and one per cent rode bicycles, the census reported.

That puts our public transit utilization way behind Toronto, which led all major cities in public transit use with 22.2 per cent of workers reporting they use the public transit system for their daily commute. Montreal came next with 21.4 per cent, followed by Ottawa at 19.4 per cent and Vancouver with 16.5 per cent using the public system.

The time the average Canadian spends commuting has risen steadily over the last two decades. In 1992, it was 54 minutes; by 1998, it had risen to 59 minutes. In 2005, a StatsCan study found that the average Canadian spent an average of 63 minutes a day making the round trip between their place of residence and their workplace.

Edmonton’s average was 62 minutes. Based on a 260-day work year, that’s the equivalent of nearly 270 hours of commuting. Do the math, and it means more than 11 full days a year getting to work and returning home.

Not only is commuting costing us time, it’s costing us money. StatsCan reports that, after shelter, transportation is the second highest cost for households, costing an average of $9,000 a year. And, as the price fuel goes up, so does the bite into our pocketbooks.

A Statistics Canada report released in January, “Dependence of cars in urban neighbourhoods,” notes that reliance on the automobile increased across Canada between 1992 and 2005. According to data from the General Social Survey (GSS) on time use, the proportion of people aged 18 and over who went everywhere by car – as either a driver or a passenger – rose from 68 per cent in 1992, to 70 per cent in 1998 and then 74 per cent in 2005.

The increase comes “even though there is a growing tendency for the population to congregate in large urban centres and people have access to better public transportation services,” writes author Martin Turcotte. “The farther people live from the city centre, the more time they spend behind the wheel.”

How to coax Edmontonians out of their cars and onto public transit, the saddle of a bicycle or the balls of their feet? It’s a good question, says Aryn Machell, a transportation planner with the City of Edmonton.

Especially considering that, over the last 60 years, Edmonton has developed a network of commodious roads that cater to automobile traffic and sprawled itself over thousands of square kilometres of mostly low-density development. Convincing people to park their vehicles will come down to having an affordable, accessible and efficient public transportation system.

“The three main reasons we try to get people to find alternatives to driving alone are to reduce vehicle emissions, help commuters save money and make more efficient use of infrastructure,” Machell says. “It saves on capital costs if we don’t have to build expensive new roads and interchanges, but also maintenance is less on existing infrastructure.”

That’s to say nothing of the traffic congestion that results as the city grows and more people are forced to use their cars. Thankfully, Machell says the city is working to provide real options for commuters, and those include improved public transit, better cycling and walking infrastructure and partnering with initiatives like carpool.ca, a web-based ride-matching service.

Expanding light rapid transit is essential, and studies show that LRT, not buses, are the best way to get people to leave their beloved car behind. The city seems to have seen the light, at long last, and after three decades of slow growth, Edmonton’s LRT system could be on the track for a $5-billion-dollar expansion. The city’s system started operation 30 years ago, but only reaches 12.9 kilometres.

The newest leg, extending 7.5 kilometres south from the University of Alberta, opens in 2010. Now there’s talk of a further extending the south LRT line to Heritage Valley and later Edmonton International Airport and the northeast line to the Gorman East area, and later to Fort Saskatchewan.

Another line, northwest from downtown to NAIT, is now being studied, and could eventually continue to St. Albert. But the time needed for planning, land acquisition and construction mean it would be at least six years and likely longer before any new lines will be operational.

The city is now in the process of updating its Bicycle Transportation Plan. That will hopefully mean the implementation of an extensive network of marked on-street cycling routes, complementing the city’s network of multi-use trail corridors.

The city has nearly completed its Sidewalk Strategy, Machell says, and it would patch the missing links in the sidewalk network. At the same time, the Community Services Department’s Walkable Edmonton initiative is about to start work on a Walkability Strategy which will complement the infrastructure focused Sidewalk Strategy.

“Ultimately, not every mode of travel works for any one person, but we want to ensure that everyone has a real choice as to how they commute,” Machell says.

It’s a laudable goal and one that will make Edmonton more liveable, more vibrant and healthier for all of us.