Moving People and Resources: Studies in Transportation

A.A. den Otter is a history professor at the Memorial University of
Newfoundland.

Canada’s enormous transcontinental expanse, its harsh and
unpredictable climate, its limited population, and its reliance on
resource exploitation have made transportation an important national
problem. The authors of Moving People and Resources, a textbook for
young readers, emphasize the decision-makers involved in constructing
transportation systems in the country.

Not surprisingly, the book opens with a description of the fur trade.
The authors discuss how the canoe and waterways opened the continent and
formed Canada’s geographic outlines, and how the Native and European
traders complemented each other’s needs and skills.

The CPR assumes an equally prominent place. Emphasizing its
construction phase, Wilson and Lorimer consider the social issues—the
hardships faced by the workers rather than the financial sacrifices made
by the investors and the ingenuity of the engineers. Unfortunately, in
not mentioning the CNR, the authors might leave the impression that
Canada has only one railway system.

The third chapter deals with the St. Lawrence seaway. It focuses on
co-operation between the United States and Canada and emphasizes the
role of governments in the seaway’s planning and construction. Little
is said about construction workers.

The strength of the fourth chapter, which deals with pipelines, is the
prominent place it accords Native people. Although there are some
interesting technical discussions, the reader gets a good sense of the
role played by the First Nations in the decision-making process.

Perhaps the best illustration of “people power” occurs in the
chapter on the Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, and Toronto rapid-transit
systems. Showing very clearly how community groups, transit officials,
and municipal governments have different objectives, this section
demonstrates how each city created uniquely different urban
transportation networks.

The chapter on air travel is perhaps the most tentative and
superficial. Fortunately, the full discussion of air safety practices
helps make this a solid contribution.

Moving People and Resources is appropriately written for its level. The
authors employ current historical, ecological, and political
interpretation. Their frequent use of sidebars helps maintain interest.
Unfortunately, however, the book is sparsely illustrated; its maps are
small, have diverse formats, and sometimes are difficult to use. Since
maps are the essence of transportation studies, the attempt to save
money on original maps seriously weakens the book. Lastly, the authors
fail to explain the transportation decision-making models, so their
significance was lost on this reviewer.