Calgary city council has given the final alignment of the Green Line LRT the green light.
On Monday, councillors voted 12-3 in favour of the final proposal for the transit project, which would traverse 46 kilometres from the southeast community of Seton to 160 Avenue in the north.
“Today … we send a message that council is fully committed to a vision that will shape Calgary’s future,” said Councillor Shane Keating, who voted for the final alignment of the project.
Council was tasked with the vote after it was approved by the city’s transportation and transit committee.
The 46-kilometre line will include 28 stations and will run from the southeast community of Seton to 160 Avenue in the north. It includes four underground stations at a cost of $250 million each.
Councillors Ward Sutherland, Andre Chabot and Joe Magliocca voted against the blueprint for the Green Line’s final alignment.
Chabot said he is concerned with rising debt costs.
Magliocca raised concerns about how much cash would be left over for other projects once the Green Line is built.
“Future councils that are coming in, they’ll get no more services throughout the city,” Magliocca said. “For instance, Glacier Ridge – are we going to get another bus out there? We don’t have the funds to do it and it’s wrong. I think we should take this one step at a time.”
Council heard that a portion of the final alignment, from 16 Avenue into the downtown core, would result in an estimated 11,000 riders a day at a cost of $800 million.
The city will now have to make a case to the provincial government for funding the Green Line.
Construction is expected to begin in 2020, with the line operational by 2026.