Green Line Update: City Council Formally Approves Project Wind Down
Yesterday, Calgary City Council formally approved the wind down the Green Line - Phase 1, from Lynnwood/Millican in the southeast to Eau Claire. After receiving project approval from Council in July, the withdrawal of financial support by the Alberta government earlier this month while they consider an alternate scope and alignment for a future LRT project to the southeast rendered this decision inevitable.
At this stage of the project, with 60% of the design completed and construction underway, the almost 1,000 staff, consultants, and contractors, current procurement, the more than 70 negotiated contracts, and ongoing construction are all directly tied to the previously approved alignment.
The City of Calgary holds all financial risk and liability associated with any further delays, meaning the decision by the Province to withhold funding left us with no feasible option but to wind down the Green Line Phase 1 Program.
After a lengthy Council meeting, Council voted 10-5 to wind down the Program to minimize the risks and costs to The City and taxpayers. The initial estimated costs to wind down the Program will exceed $850 million.
What Council Heard:
Wind down costs, including forecasted direct expenditures and risk allowance, is expected to exceed $800M. Coupled with $1.3B already spent on land acquisitions, multiple years of construction and utilities work, and the purchase of LRT cars, the total cost is expected to be at minimum $2.1B.
To pause (instead of wind down) the current project and wait for the province to present their realignment plan (expected near the end of 2024) would cost The City nearly $1M per day. That’s more than $90M over the span of the next three months.
More than 1,000 jobs will be lost - nearly 250 Green Line employees and consultants, and more than 800 contractor staff are currently working on the Green Line.
The wind-down delta (funds spent versus funds needed to wind down) is greater than what would be needed from the province to extend the current Green Line alignment to Shepard.
Rooted in the assumption that a Green Line LRT will be built in the future, the project wind down will take place over the next few months and will focus on our people and four key principles – safety, cost and risk mitigation, value preservation, and efficiency and effectiveness. The Green Line Board will oversee the wind down and ensure that all contractual obligations are fulfilled or transferred to the City by December 31, 2024.
Active construction in the Downtown will be completed this fall and work will continue on the 78 Avenue Project in the community of Ogden through to the end of November 2024, when it will be substantially complete. Outstanding work will be transferred to the City to conclude by July 2025. All other contractual obligations will be negotiated in the months ahead.
Construction details and ongoing notices will continue to be posted on the Green Line website.
For the past decade, Calgarians have been strong advocates of the Green Line LRT ensuring that decision makers understood the expectations and opportunities for communities along the alignment. You shaped this city-building project and by remaining as vocal champions your input will continue to guide future Green Line decisions and decision makers.
This is an incredibly disappointing outcome for Calgarians, especially those of us who have been advocating and fighting for the Green Line for over a decade.