Greater Moncton: Business is good in real time

The Moncton region is taking quite a bit of heat these days - complaints about housing costs, rising homelessness, more crime, difficulties accessing health care. Much of this is based on reality - the region is growing faster that at any time in history and services are not keeping up. But, as has become my mantra - better the problems of growth than decline.

Statistics Canada has a slightly different perspective on Moncton.

Starting in the early days of the pandemic, the agency developed the Real-time Local Business Conditions Index (RT-LBCI). It is considered an experimental statistic and “intended to provide a real-time signal on business activities following the disruptions brought about by the pandemic and through the recovery phase”.

They are doing this for 30 urban centres (the only one in New Brunswick is Moncton). Data on business operating conditions are generated from three commercial APIs sources: Google Places, Yelp Fusion, and Zomato. Those sources use cell phones and other sources to track retail, restaurants and other activities. This is combined with internal Stats Can data to develop the RT-LBCI. You can read more about it here.

Based on this index, business is booming these days in Moncton. Restaurants are full. People are buying stuff. There are wait lists to access services. In short, business is good - in real time.

In fact, Moncton now ranks 2nd among the 30 urban centres across Canada on this index. As of October 24, Moncton’s index number was 401 (August 2020 = 100).

So folks in Moncton, you should celebrate the fact that things are hoppin’ but then buckle down and figure out how to ensure the community can grow without exacerbating all of the challenges that come with growth.