The GreenLine is (still) the Backbone of Calgary's Best Future: An Update
Earlier this month, our office received an email from a 12-year-old resident sharing their support for the GreenLine LRT.
I'm sending you this email to show that I support the green line project. I believe that the green line should be built because it would help decrease the amount of traffic on our roads. It would also greatly decrease the amount of time it would take to travel around the city. I hope this email will persuade you to give the green line project the go ahead so they are able to start construction as soon as possible.
This email sparked a further conversation with its young author, but it also reminded us of an essay of support that we shared back in June of 2020, when the future of the GreenLine was a little less clear: The GreenLine is the backbone of Calgary’s best future.
We figured now would be a great time to include an update to that original essay, and share how we can best support the GreenLine going forward.
The good news is that the first phase of the GreenLine is fully funded and is underway: the money (roughly $5.5billion) is effectively in the bank; we have an independent board of directors overseeing a full complement of staff who go to work every day to deliver the GreenLine; we are actively engaged in early works construction moving utilities to clear underground and overhead spaces for the line; we are in the final stages of selecting a development/construction partner from two incredibly impressive international + local consortiums who are competing for the job; and we are on schedule for service to begin in 2030.
The bad news is that it has been such a political struggle to get to this point that supporters remain unsure as to whether the project is even moving forward - make no mistake, this confusion is exactly what those opposed to the project want. Their hope being that the uncertainty may cause development partners to shy away from working with us. Happily, so far, that has not been the case.
The other hope of those who oppose this project is that delays will shrink how much we can deliver as part of phase one - the years of delay, increasing interest rates, and increasing costs, have probably killed our ability to cross the Bow River from Eau Clair to 16 AV N within the phase one funding envelope (I say probably because this will only be confirmed by our development partner after they’re selected and they get to work). I assume, in their minds, a smaller first phase will allow them to better argue against funding the next phases of the project.
So when it comes to advocating for the GreenLine, the work we need to do is to begin calling for phase two funding. The federal government has set up a national transit fund that, in 2030, is forecasted to give Calgary $150million a year, every year moving forward, to build transit. The important thing to note is that this funding is dependent on the provincial government matching that funding (which would give us a combined total of around $300million/year from both the province and the feds every year moving forward). With that kind of funding, we would simply not stop building the GreenLine in 2030 and would continue building it over the next several years until it is complete - all 44kms!
Under the NDP, the province made the commitment to match the federal transit funds. When he was campaigning to beat the NDP, Jason Kenny promised to maintain that funding commitment. Unfortunately, when the UCP won in 2019, Kenny reneged on that promise, and to date, we are unsecured for funding to complete the GreenLine from the Province of Alberta. I hope both the UCP and the NDP campaign for votes in Calgary this May with that commitment as a key commitment to us.
If you’re curious to learn more, be kept up to date as the project moves forward, or get involved in advocacy to ensure we continue building the GreenLine, LRT of the Green is a citizen advocacy group working to get Calgary’s Green Line LRT built in its entirety from north to south. You can check out their website, or follow them on social media for information and ways to get involved.
Alternatively, the City of Calgary GreenLine website shares regular project progress updates and information. You can also sign up for their newsletter and have GreenLine news sent directly to your inbox.