Calgary Area Regional Transit

[MalcolmTucker]

Hey now, even Stockholm has 200 km of commuter rail track to supplement its metro system.

Don't get testy everyone! Commuter rail communities have incentive to build as dense and big as possible around stations in TOD, as it generates the most tax revenue for the least amount of infrastructure spending. With prods from the provincial land use formula, and sprawl limited by water liscenses I think there wouldn't be a problem.

Politically, this government is already the most protransit and pro city in provincial history, some times they have to throw a bone at the bed rock of support. I would much rather have that bone be commuter rail rather than the alternative of new freeways radiating from the ring road.

[Boris2k7]

^ I don't disagree with that, but I also don't see these communities readily agreeing to any framework that limits their ability to expand. They are certain to make a fuss about getting transit but with strings attached.

Stockholm also is not only dense, but has a very extensive public transit system and also has congestion charges applied similar to London's.

Also, your statement about commuter rail communities having incentives to build as dense as possible simply applies to cities in general. That is the case pretty much everywhere... but in fact we don't see that. Instead of building as dense as possible to maximize tax revenue while minimizing infrastructure spending, we have quite typically minimized tax revenue while maximizing infrastructure spending by building sprawl. So while there may be an incentive to build denser, that may not be what happens in the end.

[lubicon]

Originally Posted by josh white

^ I think an express bus or BRT model, similar to what the City does on routes that will be future LRTs is the way to go. I'm not sure the population in these areas really justifies a full blown train network at this point. Get people used to the type of service first, prove the numbers to some degree and then go for it down the line. GO train serves catchment areas that are larger than Calgary. The lakeshore line for instance serves Hamilton (to some degree), Burlington, Oakville, Mississauga, and Etobikoke area before making it to union. That is an enormous population.

And we already have this to an extent. Their are commuter busses running to DT Calgary from Cochrane for sure, and likely Airdrie, Okotoks etc. We could expand this service both in terms of frequency and routes provided.

[shogged]

From the Okotoks Western Wheel - Letters to the Editor

Transit extension will end Okotoks’ small town feel

Dear Editor,
I have to applaud our local politicians for being proactive in regards to the environment and the proposed light rail or LRT extension and there have been plenty of pros mentioned.
However, I assume most of the Okotoks residents have moved to our wonderful community to escape the city. By proposing a rail transit extension we are defeating the small town feel and becoming an extension of the city. This transit system will also make our community more accessible for more than just out of town shoppers, like criminals that prey on that small town honesty. This system will make it easier for these kinds of activities as well. Do we want the undesirables to have easier access to our quiet town? We already have 15-year-olds robbing our merchants, do we want more?
If you don’t like the commute or the price that comes along with it move back to the city. I like the idea that we have some distance between our town and the big city.
Lets allocate these funds to a much needed bullet train between Calgary and Edmonton, that I am sure will reduce way more greenhouse gas than a LRT extension to Okotoks and area.
Greg Baher
Okotoks

http://www.westernwheel.com/editorialpauls.htm

Laughed really hard at this one. I sent in my reply which included things such as, "you must be in serious denial to think that Okotoks isn't already just an extension of Calgary, ever heard of the term bedroom community?" and I also mentioned the lack of existing infrastructure in Edmonton and Calgary that would be needed to support a HSR.

[mersar]

Regional leaders fast-track transportation proposal

By Brad Herron
The Eagle
Regional transportation is being fast-tracked by the Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP).

To meet an unknown deadline sometime in September or October, the CRP’s executive committee, which includes mayors and reeves from 18 municipalities such as Cochrane, decided July 25 to develop a proposal for a portion of $2 billion the provincial government recently allocated to public transit.

Rick Butler, chair of the CRP, which is headquartered in Cochrane, said July 25 that the CRP’s transportation committee was given a terms of reference on how to proceed with a previously-announced feasibility study on regional transit and how to use that information to apply for provincial funding.

“We’re looking at starting small, and we hope we will start to get some pieces for those bigger steps, the trains and LRT,” Butler said.

Mayor Truper McBride chairs the transportation committee, but he declined to comment on the matter.

What exactly the CRP will apply for won’t be known until a proposal is officially ratified, something Butler speculated could happen as early as October.

“We are going to probably have a multi-year plan, a 20- to 25-year plan, and we will be starting to put the pieces together,” he said.

Butler said short-term objectives could include a busing service from outlying communities into Calgary and land acquisition for future transit infrastructure.

To achieve those goals, Butler said the mayors and reeves need to work together, and so far, that is exactly what has happened.

“It’s wonderful to be in step or maybe a step ahead of the province on these things,” Butler said.

Copyright © 2008 Cochrane Eagle.

Bit more news

[IntotheWest]

Originally Posted by shogged

From the Okotoks Western Wheel - Letters to the Editor

Transit extension will end Okotoks’ small town feel

Dear Editor,
I have to applaud our local politicians for being proactive in regards to the environment and the proposed light rail or LRT extension and there have been plenty of pros mentioned.
However, I assume most of the Okotoks residents have moved to our wonderful community to escape the city. By proposing a rail transit extension we are defeating the small town feel and becoming an extension of the city. This transit system will also make our community more accessible for more than just out of town shoppers, like criminals that prey on that small town honesty. This system will make it easier for these kinds of activities as well. Do we want the undesirables to have easier access to our quiet town? We already have 15-year-olds robbing our merchants, do we want more?
If you don’t like the commute or the price that comes along with it move back to the city. I like the idea that we have some distance between our town and the big city.
Lets allocate these funds to a much needed bullet train between Calgary and Edmonton, that I am sure will reduce way more greenhouse gas than a LRT extension to Okotoks and area.
Greg Baher
Okotoks

http://www.westernwheel.com/editorialpauls.htm

Laughed really hard at this one. I sent in my reply which included things such as, "you must be in serious denial to think that Okotoks isn't already just an extension of Calgary, ever heard of the term bedroom community?" and I also mentioned the lack of existing infrastructure in Edmonton and Calgary that would be needed to support a HSR.

Yeah, there is going to be this resistance still. And keep in mind, that there are quite a few residents (such as myself) that don't travel to the city regularly.

However, in the bigger picture, you're absolutely right. Okotoks wouldn't be 21,000 and growth of 43% since 2001 if it was truly a stand-alone town. The biggest problem with the comments this person made is making it "accessible" to out-of-towners. As much as I like Okotoks, I don't know too many that get so bored in Calgary that they need to make the trip south....that applies to "all types".

Anyhow - no rail extension...it might just be a BRT line. What a lot of folks don't realize yet is bedroom community towns need to re-invent themselves as well, or they' just become irrelevant in the not-so-distant future.

[shogged]

Originally Posted by IntotheWest

Yeah, there is going to be this resistance still. And keep in mind, that there are quite a few residents (such as myself) that don't travel to the city regularly.

However, in the bigger picture, you're absolutely right. Okotoks wouldn't be 21,000 and growth of 43% since 2001 if it was truly a stand-alone town. The biggest problem with the comments this person made is making it "accessible" to out-of-towners. As much as I like Okotoks, I don't know too many that get so bored in Calgary that they need to make the trip south....that applies to "all types".

Anyhow - no rail extension...it might just be a BRT line. What a lot of folks don't realize yet is bedroom community towns need to re-invent themselves as well, or they' just become irrelevant in the not-so-distant future.

my response got published! they don't have the online version but if you get a chance to pick up the paper, check it out!

[frinkprof]

^I don't suppose you have it in digital format do you? I'd be interested to read it.

[IntotheWest]

^Excellent...I will get a copy.

As I just posted in the Calgary Construction forum, I think there's still a lot of education to be done to the general public. I agree, give up the "we're a small town, not part of Calgary" mentality, and realize where you're at. If you want a small town feel, move to Kinistino, Sask. No city will bug you there.

[lubicon]

I'm sure it won't be long before we see a website showing before and after images of what Okotoks will look like, a la the Best West LRT site.

[shogged]

Originally Posted by frinkprof

^I don't suppose you have it in digital format do you? I'd be interested to read it.

i'll post it as soon as its up online, usually takes 1-2 days after the paper comes out

[mersar]

Theres been a bit of interesting discussion on one of the local forums for Cochrane, where one of the posters is the Mayor the town so we get a bit of an inside track in knowing more detail about whats been publicly said. However the 'we want community consultation' noises are starting to surface, which at the stage that the plan is at probably is a bit premature in my view until an initial plan is hammered out.

[mersar]

More news:

Commuter rail may be on its way

By Brad Herron
The Eagle
Cochrane is a “strong contender” to receive a pilot commuter-rail service, said Mayor Truper McBride.
CP Rail has indicated to the Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP) that Cochrane may be the first to receive commuter rail due to the relative ease in designing the service, he said July 31.
“From downtown Calgary to downtown Cochrane is one line,” McBride said.
While Airdrie has nearly three times Cochrane’s 13,000-plus population, it would be easier to direct passengers into Calgary from Cochrane.
Although trains are the mayor’s ultimate long-term goal, McBride said he is pushing for a bus service with a station on Calgary Transit’s light rail system.
He is encouraged by the City of Calgary’s enthusiasm for the project, which could potentially remove vehicles from already crowded city roads.
“The city has indicated it is possible for them to do it very, very quickly without any real operating hit to any of the communities,” McBride said.
The regional partnership is currently using a $500,000 grant from the province to research the viability of heavy-rail, light-rail and rapid-bus transit in the region. This includes demographics, travel patterns and potential ridership.
A proposal to the province needs to be completed and sent in September or October. The town is not submitting its own proposal, the mayor said. He still hopes to conduct a local transit feasibility study if it is approved by council.
Premier Ed Stelmach recently announced $2 billion in funding to “green” transit systems across the province. In his announcement, Stelmach indicated heavy-rail transit may be a possibility for Alberta’s major cities.
McBride said the proposal to secure a portion of the money the province recently offered up for transit will likely include funds for a bus service between many of the communities in the CRP and Calgary.
“This wouldn’t be trains, it would be standard buses,” he said.
He hopes it won’t be strictly designed for commuters on a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. work schedule. An all-day service would accommodate seniors and students, he said.
“If I had my dream transit system, (buses) would be running on separate lanes. But chances are, they will be on the same lanes,” McBride said.
It is all part of a vision McBride hopes will link the Calgary region through non-vehicular modes of travel.
“There is going to be rapid population booms continuing here, so laying this groundwork and infrastructure down now is going to pay off not just for the region, but for the city in the long term.”

[mersar]

Mayor says transit could be here by March
by SARA LOFTSON
Wednesday September 10, 2008

Cochrane residents can expect to see the Transportation Plan Update 2008 at an open house sometime in mid-October.

Jim Anderson, director of Operational Services, and members of the consulting firm Urban Systems, who prepared the report, presented updates to the transportation plan at the Sept. 8 council meeting.

Council postponed receiving the Transportation Plan Update at their meeting on July 14, so administration could review the transit plans to provide more background on the Town’s economic indicators, the Horse Creek Road crossing and the Hwy 22 and Hwy 1A intersection.

Lynda Cooke-Jepson, a consulting engineer with Urban Systems, reviewed these items with council at the September meeting.

The report has been revised to replace the generic transit plans with plans that will suit the specific needs of Cochrane.

Mayor Truper McBride said that Cochrane could potentially see external transit buses here by March, depending on how fast planning goes.

In July, the Mayor was concerned that the transportation plans did not support the future influx in population that council had anticipated. Now the report estimates that Cochrane will number 30,000 by 2016 and 49,000 by 2026.

Cooke-Jepson stressed that the transportation plan reflects an ambitious attempt to reduce the external employment relative to the labour force participation rate.

Her projections showed that external employment will continue to decrease, showing that in 2006 the external full-time employment rate was 55 per cent, by 2016 it will be 50 per cent and by 2026 it will be 45 per cent.

She showed figures from similar southern Alberta communities to show Cochrane was on par; in 2001, 66 per cent of Airdrie’s population worked outside the city and Okotoks numbered 65 per cent.

The report now clarifies that future roadwork is expected to be completed in two phases: anytime before 2016 and again anytime after 2016 but before 2026.

As for Horse Creek Road crossing, Cooke-Jepson said now it must be completed by 2016. The crossing connects from Hwy 1A to Quigley Drive. By 2016 it will be realigned north of Hwy 1A to connect with Heritage Hill access and open a two-lane at-grade CPR crossing.

The report emphasized that the improvements recommended in Alberta Transportation’s plans for Hwy 22 and Hwy 1A are not sufficient to reach the 2026 development goals. The province does not intend to create an interchange at that intersection.

But Councillor Miles Chester wanted to state more clearly in the report that twinning and creating an interchange at Hwy 22 and 1A is what Cochrane intends to do.

“Okotoks has got it right. They’ve got a four lane highway that goes right through town,” said Chester.

He asked Anderson how council can convince the province that they are serious about the twinning of Hwy 22 and Hwy 1A.

“Why don’t we just put twinning into our transportation plans? It looks like we’ve left it out.”

Anderson responded: “While we agree twinning may be the ultimate solution, but to make a change in the transportation plan would make significant changes to the town.

“We have to accept that the province is not in agreement right now.”

Chester made sure that everyone agreed that the transportation plan is a living, breathing document that can be changed with time.

After the transportation plan open house, any public input will be added into the final summary before the transportation plan is presented to council for adoption.

March sounds good to me

[mersar]

Premier to hear rail pitch

By Brad Herron
The Eagle
The future of heavy rail commuting for Cochrane residents rests in the hands of Premier Ed Stelmach.
On Oct. 19, Mayor Truper McBride and Airdrie Mayor Linda Bruce will meet with the premier in Calgary to bounce ideas off the province’s top politician and convince him their plan to bring passenger rail to Calgary’s outlying communities is the best way to spend a previously-announced $2 billion.
“Indications are the premier right now is very supportive of the direction we are going and heavy rail seems to be a high priority for him as well,” McBride said Oct. 14.
Stelmach has previously announced heavy-rail transit will happen eventually within the Calgary region.
McBride has been told the decision won’t rest with bureaucrats, but with Stelmach and Transportation Minister Luke Ouellette. Donning his Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP) cap, McBride recently met with top officials from Alberta Transportation and came away sure the province was listening
“It wasn’t one of those sessions where they were consulting because they have to and they have their minds made up, they really wanted to know what we thought,” he said.
Details of the CRP’s proposal are still scarce, but McBride said the regional group will go towards “helping municipalities acquire land for necessary stations, begin helping municipalities with their transit-feasibility studies internally and reserving rights-of-way along the CP line.”
But if the premier writes the partnership a $1.5-billion cheque, McBride said the first train could leave the station in three years. Realistically, the mayor said Cochrane will likely have rail service within a decade if a significant portion of the Green Trip dollars are allocated to the CRP at year’s end.
“There is going to be an element of the proposal supportive of Calgary’s southeast LRT extension, there is going to be a significant portion going towards prepping the region for a heavy-rail retrofit, there is probably going to be a portion to pulling immediate rapid-bus transit,” McBride said, adding Cochrane could see a public bus service into Calgary by March, although he hopes the province thinks long-term instead.
Other than Stelmach’s decision, McBride said a number of roadblocks lie in wait for commuter rail to Calgary. Alberta Transportation does not allocate dollars towards an operation budget of such a system, although that may be changing due to pressure for a number of interests.
A year ago, the idea of heavy rail transit was a pipe-dream. Only 12 months into his first term, McBride said that idea has gone an “astronomical distance.”
“Even Mayor (Dave) Bronconnier said yes, he has bought into it now. A year ago I spoke with him and he just kind of said, ‘You know Truper, it’s a good idea, but it is not going to happen,’” McBride said.
CP Rail is onside with the project, McBride said, and significant discussions have occurred with the CRP. The group’s first land-use plan will be unveiled Oct. 19.

From today's issue of the Cochrane Eagle

[mersar]

No public buses for now

By Ian Tennant
The Eagle
Buses funded by taxpayers will not be transporting commuters to Calgary in the New Year.
The Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP) will instead concentrate on pulling the pieces together for a heavy rail commuter line between the city and surrounding communities, said Mayor Truper McBride.
The Cochrane mayor and Linda Bruce, mayor of Airdrie, met with Premier Ed Stelmach in Calgary on Oct. 17 to discuss the province’s pledge of $2 billion to improve public transit and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
While Stelmach was “frustratingly vague” at times, McBride said he left the two mayors with the impression that he would rather see the CRP work on long-range “strategic investments,” such as buying land for rail corridors and stations, than offering buses that could have been operational by March.
“I was pleased he didn’t want to see something immediate that would have had a political benefit for him,” said McBride Oct. 20.
It’s the premier’s understanding, said a spokesman Oct. 21, that the government prefers to not be “locked into any particular idea over another.”
David Heyman, communications manager for the premier’s Calgary office, said the ultimate goal it to have communities working together to cut down greenhouse gas emissions by whatever means provides Albertans with a “better bang for the buck.”
McBride also prefers the long-range focus rather than “some kind of political statement” like buses, a “visual” confirmation the premier is acting on the environment.
He notes Southland already offers a service for Cochrane commuters.

From this week's Cochrane Eagle

[gary]

Yes, an absolutely great idea. Calgary and Edmonton could have something like the west coast express in vancouver. If there is the will to do it. Though i wonder how many commuters would use it?

[feepa]

That's it all right there...

Though i wonder how many commuters would use it?

[slide_rule]

i might regret wading into this convo. but it's still better than actually focusing on work.

it doesn't make sense to build commuter lines into sparsely populated hamlets when the city of calgary itself needs to densify and improve its transit infrastructure. it's especially important as calgary is projected to grow rapidly.

i wouldn't compare stockholm with calgary. most of stockholm was built before the era of the car. spending the money for commuter rail won't pay off if it results in more big lot/single family houses, and a lower overall density.

in an ideal world, municipalities would aspire to have higher densities and higher efficiencies. unfortunately it's not an ideal world, and people cling to expensive and inefficient notions of living on a grassy lot like some 19th century english nobleman. then you don't want calgarian office workers spilling into other municipal jurisdictions for tax purposes... i could go on, but the points have already been covered.

[MalcolmTucker]

^ The whole point of this is if the province won't contribute to a Calgary only project, to still get money that can do some good. You couple the money with conditions on minimum density, and a very high density station area plan.

The regional network reinforces the primacy of Calgary's downtown and other nodes over further extensive sprawl. Fortunately water issues constrain many of the municipalities surround Calgary aswell. Providing cheap housing in far off suburbs isn't necessarily a bad thing, as long as the land use would be supportive of a car free lifestyle, and there is adequate transit.

Also, it would help support HSR, and provide a single seat to the airport (at least to the people mover...).