Council voted to apply for a $160,000 Alberta Community Partnership Grant to conduct a feasibility study for a regional transit service.
The study is for a service that would include Strathmore and Chestermere as partners in a two-year pilot project paid through grant dollars from the Calgary Regional Partnership (CRP).
The cost-sharing structure between the three partnering municipalities would be modelled similarly to the South Calgary On-It transit pilot project launched earlier this fall, linking Black Diamond, High River, Okotoks and Turner Valley to Calgary.
Ettore Iannacito, regional transportation program manager for the Calgary Regional Partnership, delivered a well-received presentation that resulted in various support and concerns from councillors.
“I was the instigator of getting the ball rolling with this,” said Mayor Ivan Brooker who is on the CRP executive board, adding that it doesn’t make sense for Cochrane to not move ahead with the provincial grant-funded opportunity.
While councillors expressed concerns about committing to a regional transit service before a town service was off the ground, Brooker said it’s not uncommon – as demonstrated by other regional transit projects including Banff, Canmore and three the three municipalities in the South Calgary pilot.
“We’re not setting any precedence here by any stretch of the imagination – all of the other five municipalities have gone ahead with regional before local.”
As presented by Iannacito, preliminary ideas include three to four trips to and from the municipalities to Calgary daily; the South Calgary model has similar fares – $6 for a one-way trip and $155 for a monthly pass; and a Cochrane to Calgary destination terminating of the Crowfoot LRT.
The CRP grant dollars would be $500,000 per year for two years for each participating municipality, which is anticipated to fully cover costs. According to Iannacito, if not one person rode the bus the gross costs would be $660,000 for each municipality.
The South Calgary pilot started with around 10 daily passengers, rising to 30 to 35 in eight weeks. Iannacito estimates it takes around a year to get a more accurate reflection of ridership.
Coun. Morgan Nagel expressed concerns over committing to a pilot that results in a low ridership and leaves council with little option but to pick up the tab in year three.
Councillors Jeff Toews, Mary Lou Eckmeier, Gaynor Levisky and Ross Watson were adamant that buses need to be accessible and should have bike racks (not included in the South Calgary network).
All councillors expressed a desire to see further numbers and an in-depth feasibility study.
Brooker, who was strongly opposed to local transit five years ago, said that “the world is changing and whether people like it or not (transit) is something that will be imposed on us more and more.”
A presentation will be made on local transit at the Jan. 9 council session.
Following an anticipated grant approval, the feasibility study the regional model would begin in January. Should council give the green light to the pilot project, buses could be up and running as early as fall of 2017.
