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I'm guessing access issues would put a damper on any transit proof of concept as is. Could maybe restart some kind of tourist service though?

I can see a western themed train to Banff during stampede being popular, would be good publicity and help build public support for the expensive parts of the project.

I wonder how much it would take to add some elevators and upgrade the palliser platforms to current access and safety specs?

It could still be cheap and fast to get basic commuter rail going, less than five years if the will was there.
 
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Nothing of note really, but the delay isn't encouraging.. Seems like the scale and complexity of the endeavor wasn't understood?

In a statement to Postmedia, a department official with the ministry of transportation said the plan is expected to come later this year — months after it was anticipated. They said the province is being deliberate with the plan and will not be rushing it.
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Obligatory reference...

 
Meanwhile,

Screenshot_20260207-004530_1.png


Since the start of the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25), the country has built and put into operation about 12,000 kilometers of HSR,
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Adding 2400 km to the HSR network each year is pretty staggering!

AB should definitely outsource the project, it could be done in as little as 2 months! 😂
 
This could be the case of wanting to have something to announce versus just saying here's the plan, but we don't have any plan to implement the plan. Not that when it comes out, they'll announce anything substantial, but I assume they're moving money around in the budget to at least do a little something. They're priming Albertans for a bad news budget, holding on to this for some good news stories that a deeper look at a certain portion of the plan is being funded.

In summary, there's a bit of politics being played with this. I don't think any big decision will come until after the next Provincial election, which is 18-ish months away at the longest.
 
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https://www.ctvnews.ca/calgary/arti...enger-rail-study-set-to-be-released-in-weeks/

Federal Minister of Transport Steven MacKinnon was in Calgary Wednesday. He is awaiting a master rail plan study from the province, which was supposed to be released last fall.

“I’m all ears when it comes to passenger and cargo rail in this part of the world,” MacKinnon said.

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the plan involves “eight or nine different segments.”

“It’s a longer-term plan, but it’ll be released in the coming weeks,” Smith said.
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Interesting that we're weeks away from seeing this plan, I'm curious to see the plan and who's going to pay for what.

It is understood the province covers downtown to the airport and Liricon covers downtown to Banff. But there are a lot more things to sort out. At this point all we have is a napkin drawing and they claim trains can be running by 2030, I doubt it.
 
trtcttc said:
It's probably a good thing if there's some contractual obligation to build a line so we don't do the dilly dallying of the Green Line all over again.
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Definitely a lot of lessons can be taken from the GL, particularly in terms of having an ambitious decade+ plan on paper and needing to figure out where to start, with two similarly compelling/deserving projects, that may or may not be intertwined and dependent on each other.

As much as I would love to hear some big announcements, it's probably a good thing that they haven't done any premature over-promising yet.

Whether they want to prioritize Banff or Edmonton, DT Calgary to Nose Creek/YYC will be needed. So here's my conspiracy theory:

GL engagement is intended to generate overwhelming rejection so the city can say "we can't tunnel and we can't elevate so it's impossible to connect to Centre St; so the best we can do is punch into DT with a simple underpass. But we'll use those savings to build further SE! And don't worry northerners, we're working with the province to build a Nose Creek LRT right away that will kinda sorta serve you too! It always used to be the plan and you'll get it much sooner than you would have otherwise."

And I don't think that would be a bad outcome at all.
 
lemongrab said:
Definitely a lot of lessons can be taken from the GL, particularly in terms of having an ambitious decade+ plan on paper and needing to figure out where to start, with two similarly compelling/deserving projects, that may or may not be intertwined and dependent on each other.

As much as I would love to hear some big announcements, it's probably a good thing that they haven't done any premature over-promising yet.

Whether they want to prioritize Banff or Edmonton, DT Calgary to Nose Creek/YYC will be needed. So here's my conspiracy theory:

GL engagement is intended to generate overwhelming rejection so the city can say "we can't tunnel and we can't elevate so it's impossible to connect to Centre St; so the best we can do is punch into DT with a simple underpass. But we'll use those savings to build further SE! And don't worry northerners, we're working with the province to build a Nose Creek LRT right away that will kinda sorta serve you too! It always used to be the plan and you'll get it much sooner than you would have otherwise."

And I don't think that would be a bad outcome at all.
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I don’t think the engagement really matters. It’s just a checkbox. Many things with overwhelming negative public feedback goes ahead anyways if they deem it necessary.
 
trtcttc said:
I don’t think the engagement really matters. It’s just a checkbox. Many things with overwhelming negative public feedback goes ahead anyways if they deem it necessary.
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It can matter as much or as little as they want it to. Normally engagements emphasize project benefits and quietly acknowledge potential downsides. The way this one is done warrants raised eyebrows, though it could also mean nothing.
 
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