Calgary Transit
Calgary Transit is the public transit agency which is owned and operated by the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. In 2019, an estimated 106.5 million passengers boarded approximately 1,155 Calgary Transit vehicles. It operates light metro, urban tramway, bus rapid transit, para-transit, and regular bus services. In, the system had a ridership of, or about per weekday as of.
History
What would eventually become Calgary Transit began as the Calgary Street Railway on July 5, 1909, with twelve electric streetcars serving what was at the time a city of 30,000.This streetcar service expanded throughout the next thirty years until 1946, when the company was renamed to Calgary Transit System as electric trolleybus vehicles began replacing the local streetcars. Eventually the electric trolley lines were phased out together — to be replaced by diesel buses. In 1972, CTS assumed its current name of Calgary Transit.
Between the early 1970s and 2000, Calgary Transit had a three tier bus service. Standard bus routes were identified with white bus stop signs. Blue Arrow bus routes, marked by blue signs, provided limited stops, and all day service to suburban neighbourhoods from the city centre. Express service was indicated with red signs and provided extremely limited bus service to the far reaches of the city during peak hours only. These tiers have been slowly phased out, since Calgary Transit began expanding CTrain lines and capacity and implementing BRT service. The last Blue Arrow route was cancelled in December, 2019. Express routes now appear side by side on the same signs as regular routes. MAX routes appear on a separate white and grey sign, while non-MAX BRT lines appear on red and white signs.
In 2012, Calgary Transit planners presented mayor Naheed Nenshi's council with a tentative 30-year plan 'RouteAhead' to enhance the capacities of Calgary Transit.
On December 13, 2012, Craig Hardy, became the one hundred millionth rider of the year. He received free transit for a year and was celebrated by mayor Nenshi.
CTrain light rail system
On May 25, 1981, Calgary Transit became one of the first transit systems in North America to operate a light rail system — the CTrain, on which construction had begun in 1978. The original line ran from Anderson station to 8th St SW in Downtown Calgary.On April 27, 1985, a northeastern-bound line was opened, running from 8th St SW to Whitehorn station, and on September 4, 1987, a northwestern-bound line was opened in time for the 1988 Winter Olympics, running from downtown to University station.
On September 3, 1990, a 1 km extension of the northwest line to Brentwood station was opened; on October 9, 2001, two new stations — Canyon Meadows station and Fish Creek–Lacombe station were added to the south line; on December 15, 2003, Dalhousie station was added to the northwestern line.
On June 28, 2004, two new stations for the south line opened: Shawnessy station and Somerset–Bridlewood station.
On December 17, 2007, an extension was made to the Route 202 northeast line from Whitehorn to the new McKnight–Westwinds station.;
On June 15, 2009, Crowfoot station was added on the northwest line located directly west of Crowfoot Town Centre in the median of Crowchild Trail.
On August 27, 2012, Martindale and Saddletowne stations were added to the northeast line, bringing the total number of stations on this line to 10.
On December 10, 2012, the West LRT opened, with six new stations and Downtown West–Kerby station in downtown. Since it is Calgary's newest LRT line in 25 years, it is an extension of Route 202. After this opening, the CTrain system total length is now long.
Future extensions include the North Central line and the Southeast line running from north of North Pointe Bus Terminal, down Centre Street, through downtown, into the communities of Ogden, Douglasdale and McKenzie in the southeastern portion of the city, finally ending at the South Health Campus in Seton. Phase one of the North Central Line will travel from Eau Claire downtown to Shepard in the SE. This is seen as the most complex portion of the line, requiring tunneling through downtown as well as a large elevated portion. Construction started in 2018 on works to enable future rail construction.
On July 18, 2007, Calgary Transit officially unveiled a new red and white livery for its CTrain, articulated buses and every new bus or train coming into the system.
On August 27, 2008, a train en route to the Somerset station collided with a construction crane in between the Dalhousie and Brentwood stations. Six were injured in the accident, including one child.
On February 18, 2009, Calgary Transit celebrated the 1,000,000,000th rider, randomly selecting a passenger, Shelly Xiao during a ceremony at the 1 Street SW CTrain station.
Bus rapid transit and future
On August 30, 2004, Calgary Transit opened a bus rapid transit line to operate future CTrain routes, using conventional buses until articulated buses entered service on June 25, 2007. The BRT system consisted of a single route, Route 301, serving the northern and western parts of the city. A subsequent route, Route 305, was added in 2008, serving the Bowness and 17th Avenue East corridors. A third route, Route 302, entered service on August 31, 2009, along a proposed southeast LRT corridor.The BRT is considered to be the successor to the Blue Arrow service introduced to the 1970s: both were a series of limited-stop routes that were to be intended to be replaced by LRT service in the future — however, the Blue Arrow service was never a true BRT, the modern BRT includes priority at traffic signals, enhanced passenger waiting areas and offers a shorter travel time to the downtown with greater capacity articulated buses. The Blue Arrow name all but disappeared in 2000 in order to unify all bus stops under one common scheme, but certain Blue Arrow routes are still in service to this day. In fact, Route 305 replaces a Blue Arrow route.
On September 28, 2009, Council approved the Calgary Transportation Plan, fulfilling Council's priorities of "a city that moves." The CTP identified over 20 corridors that would serve as the city's future Primary Transit Network. These corridors laid the foundations of Calgary Transit's future BRT network. Preliminary functional studies were undertaken – specifically for 17 Avenue SE and the Southwest Transitway – to explore the feasibility of major transit projects for the near future. On January 11, 2011, Council approved the Bus Rapid Transit Network Plan, which outlined 11 BRT projects that the City plans to pursue in the short, medium, and long terms respectively.These plans included the introduction of 9 new BRT routes: the Airport BRT, which would connect the Downtown Core with Calgary International Airport; the Southwest Transitway BRT, which would connect the Downtown Core with Mount Royal University and Woodbine; the Southwest Crosstown BRT, which would connect Westbrook Station with MRU and Quarry Park; the North Crosstown BRT, which would connect Saddletowne Station with 16 Avenue N and the University of Calgary; the 17 Avenue SE Transitway BRT, which would connect the Downtown Core, Inglewood, 17 Avenue SE, towards the East City Limits; the 52 Street E BRT, which would connect Saddletowne and South Health Campus through the Southeast Industrial Area; the Sage Hill BRT, which would connect Brentwood Station with the Sage Hill Transit Hub using the Shaganappi HOV; the 162 Avenue S BRT, which would connect Somerset-Bridlewood Station with Providence; and the Southeast Crosstown BRT, which would connect Somerset-Bridlewood Station with South Health Campus through Marquis of Lorne Trail. The plans also included enhancements of existing routes 301, 302, and 305.
The Airport BRT was actualised on July 27, 2011, with Route 300. This line was introduced after Calgary's Mayor promised to make the airport more accessible via public transit. On March 12, 2012, BRT service was cut significantly in Calgary. The 302 now runs with shuttle buses during off peak hours and weekends. The 305 does not run on weekends at all. These are both due to low ridership. The Southwest Crosstown BRT was actualised on December 10, 2012, with the Route 306. This route runs from Westbrook Station to Heritage Station, connecting MRU and Rockyview Hospital.
In December 2012, Council approved the RouteAhead Plan, which outlined the major transit projects the city would pursue for the next 30 years. RouteAhead identified the BRT routes Southwest Transitway, North Crosstown, Southwest Crosstown, 17 Avenue SE, 52 Street E, and Sage Hill as the key priorities for the city.
Plans not included in RouteAhead – like the 162 Avenue S BRT and the conversions of Route 300 and the 17 Avenue SE BRT into a LRT – were identified as projects to be conducted beyond the 30-year RouteAhead timeframe. RouteAhead also foreshadowed the plan of a new BRT route: the North Regional Context Study/144 Avenue N BRT, which would connect Tuscany Station with the planned Stoney Station, passing through communities north of 144 Avenue North and CrossIron Mills.
On November 19, 2018, Calgary's BRT network received an overhaul, and saw the introduction of three new lines. The new lines were incorporated under the MAX branding: MAX Orange, connecting Brentwood Station with Saddletowne Station, passing through 16th Avenue N; MAX Teal, connecting Westbrook Station with the Douglas Glen Transit Hub, passing through MRU, Rockyview Hospital, Heritage Station, and Deerfoot Meadows; and MAX Purple, connecting the Downtown Core with East Hills, along a dedicated transitway along International Avenue. The former route 306 was reincorporated under MAX, and busses are now labelled as "MAX Teal." In order to make the new service unique from existing "BRT" routes, new stops now have heated shelters, real-time information, elevated sidewalks, and security cameras. MAX Purple is the first service in Calgary to run on a dedicated transitway. In November 2019, the Southwest MAX line, renamed MAX Yellow, opened to the public. It is the second bus service in Calgary to operate in a dedicated transitway. This route runs from the Downtown Core to Woodbine, passing through MRU and 14 Street SW. As the Currie Barracks area of Calgary develops, the route will eventually be re-routed to serve that area. When a bus equipped with a Luminator Spectrum colour display operates a MAX route, the corresponding colour is displayed alongside the route name.
On September 4, 2023, Calgary Transit eliminated route 305.