Plans & studies

The Sustainable Transportation Partnership of the Central Okanagan (STPCO) is a formal partnership of the City of Kelowna, City of West Kelowna, Districts of Lake Country and Peachland, Westbank First Nation and the Regional District of Central Okanagan. The organization coordinates the regional delivery of sustainable transportation programs and projects in support of common regional policy, plans and interests (economic, social and environmental). Existing and ongoing regional planning processes and studies are outlined below.

Regional Transportation Plan

The Regional Transportation Plan will help shape the future of the Central Okanagan region by identifying transportation investments that will be needed over the next 20 years.

It was coordinated with the Kelowna Transportation Master Plan (TMP), the Kelowna Official Community Plan (OCP), the Okanagan Gateway Transportation Study (OGTS), and the Central Okanagan Planning Study (COPS), among other current long-range planning efforts.

Any prioritized options for regional transportation programs and investments that are made in the Regional Transportation Plan will be coordinated with these other long-range plans.

Learn more

Okanagan Gateway Transportation Study

The Okanagan Gateway Transportation Study defines future projects, programs and policies that will improve connections to Kelowna International Airport and UBC Okanagan. It will support the vision of the airport, university and surrounding area as a growing, vibrant and connected hub that benefits the whole region.

This plan is being coordinated with, and will help inform, the Regional Transportation Plan.

Regional Bicycling & Trails Master Plan

The Regional Bicycling and Trails Master Plan (RBTMP) is an update to the 2012 Regional Active Transportation Master Plan. In the years since the 2012 Plan was created, many connections have been completed, additional active transportation plans have been developed, and provincial and federal active transportation design guidance has been updated.

This plan reflects those changes, and along with the Central Okanagan’s first Regional Transportation Plan (RTP), will help focus investments in the regional bicycling and trail networks. 

View the plan

This plan was been developed through the Sustainable Transportation Partnership of the Central Okanagan (STPCO). The STPCO partners include the Regional District of Central Okanagan (RDCO), the City of West Kelowna, Westbank First Nation, the District of Lake Country, the District of Peachland and the City of Kelowna. Development of the plan was supported by a grant from the Strategic Priorities Fund under the Administrative Agreement on the Federal Gas Tax Fund (GTF) in British Columbia. By developing this Regional Bicycling and Trails Master Plan, the STPCO members have demonstrated a commitment to active transportation and to working together to better connect the Central Okanagan region.

Okanagan Household Travel Study

The 2018 Okanagan Travel Survey is one of the largest public surveys undertaken in the valley and provides the most comprehensive picture to date of how people move around the Central Okanagan and the City of Vernon. Over ten thousand residents participated, logging the details of over thirty thousand trips, and covering the distance to the moon and back – six times. 

The 2018 survey was conducted between late October and mid December of 2018. It is the third such survey, with previous surveys having been conducted in 2007 and 2013. The survey was completed with 4,886 households, representing a 4.8 per cent sample of households in Vernon, Kelowna and the rest of the Central Okanagan. The survey gathered information on household and demographic characteristics relevant to understanding travel patterns. The survey also captured detailed trip information for residents aged 5+ years that provides a snapshot of the 24-hour travel patterns of residents of the study area over the course of a typical Fall weekday. 

2018 results

2013 results

Westside Trail Brief

Completion of the Westside Trail is a recommendation in both the Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) and the Regional Bicycling and Trails Master Plan (RBTMP). Once complete, the trail would connect the communities of Kelowna, West Kelowna, West Bank First Nation, and Peachland. This Technical Brief provides an overview of the segments that comprise the Westside Trail, including potential alignments, facility types and costs. It is an update to the 2016 Technical Brief to bring it up to date with recently developed active transportation plans and design guidance. 

View the Brief

Regional Active Transportation Wayfinding Strategy

The Central Okanagan Regional Wayfinding Strategy was developed in 2016 in consultation with municipal and First Nation representatives to provide partner agencies with a consistent plan for implementing signage for pedestrian and bicycle travel across the region. The strategy was developed following the creation of the City of Kelowna Wayfinding Strategy (2015). 

The document details key local destinations along priorities routes and provides guidance in wayfinding best-practice to aid in developing and placing signage that provide easy to understand, direct and clear information for residents and visitors. Distinct sign types are applied to multi-use (off-roadway) pathways and separated bike lanes (cycle-tracks). Supplementary sign design guidance was added to provided additional direction on the design of street signage for cycle-tracks. 

Kelowna pathway installations: