EDMONTON – Would you ride the LRT more if you could take routes as clever as the GasoLine, as grumpy as the Oilers Suck Line or as perfectly Edmonton as the Perogy Line?
These are among the approximately 3,000 suggestions from 900 people the city didn’t accept when it announced in January the new official names for Edmonton’s five current and future LRT routes.
Marketing gurus felt Capital, Metro, Valley, Energy and Festival would best serve the urban rail network developing over the next 30 years.
After they winnowed down the public submissions and did an online survey along with three focus groups last fall to choose the winners, the city wouldn’t reveal any of the also-rans.
But a 30-page list of all the ideas, obtained by the Journal through an Access to Information request, shows there’s a wider variety of subjects than the experts picked that Edmonton citizens feel produce good LRT names.
Birds and animals? Magpies, moose, mice, mountain goats, mule deer and mosquitoes all got shout outs, and that’s just under M.
Following that theme, prehistoric reptiles were also proposed, with props for edmontosaurus, albertosaurus and the straightforward Dinosaur Line.
There are pages dedicated to points of the compass – north, northwest, south, southwest, west and east – communities in all four quadrants of the city and specific locations from Ellerslie to Lewis Estates.
And, of course, noted Albertans are a popular choice.
There are past premiers from Alexander Rutherford to Ralph Klein, the Famous 5, Mountie Sir Sam Steele, aviators Wop May and Max Ward, Fort Edmonton chief factor John Rowand and basketball’s Edmonton Grads.
Mayor Stephen Mandel, his predecessors Jan Reimer and Laurence Decore, and Oilers owner Daryl Katz are mentioned, along with architect Douglas Cardinal, actor Jill Hennessy and singer k.d. lang.
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Mandel says he’s happy he wasn’t chosen.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, because I didn’t pay for the LRT personally. Council collectively decided to do it. I don’t think any one person should (be honoured).”
But LRT passenger Kyle McFall isn’t impressed with all the names picked, which will start going up along the existing Capital Line in September.
“I think the Festival Line is kind of foolish. They need something more official. It’s like ‘Hey, I went to Festival’ – how does that sound?,” he says, referring to the route envisioned through downtown and Old Strathcona.
“They need to come up with something that goes to that countryside or that region. It may be the St. Albert Line (or) something like Cross City Transit … Anybody could realize where they’re going on that transit line.”
Both of his ideas are on the suggestion list.
McFall is also sympathetic with Oilers fans who want to commemorate stars from 1980s glory years such as Mark Messier, Grant Fuhr, Paul Coffey, Jari Kurri and The Great One, but he’s glad the city didn’t go down this path.
“Realistically, the only famous person I have in my mind is Wayne Gretzky, but he has enough stuff named after him.”
Canadian centres have various methods of labelling their rail lines, including colours in Calgary and Montreal, and nearby streets in Toronto.
Some people put in suggestions to make a point, such as the Stupid Pile of Balls (referring to the sculpture beside Quesnell Bridge), Champions of What? and Lying Politician lines.
Others wanted to make a joke. Take a bow, Base Line, Bee Line and Fishing Line.
But the issue of marketing is serious for public transit systems, says Rhys Thom of Embarq, which works with cities around the world on environmentally sustainable transportation and urban development.
Creating a cohesive transit brand, including easy-to-understand lines, helps attract riders and makes finding directions simpler, says Thom, director of information and innovation for the Washington, D.C.-based non-profit group.
“Surveys show people find it less confusing than cities that have separate systems branded differently,” he says.
“Keeping it as easy as possible is important, and naming is a big part of that.”
But it has to be the right name.
There are claims Seattle’s streetcar route was originally called the South Lake Union Trolley, and even though it’s officially the South Lake Union Line many residents still refer to it as the SLUT.
Thom also warns against line labels implying slow service, such as the turtle, and suggests if someone famous is identified it should be a speedy Olympic athlete.
Edmontonians must agree, proposing honours for homegrown bobsledder Pierre Lueders and 1912 Games running competitor Alex Decoteau, Edmonton and Canada’s first aboriginal police officer.
However, no individual made the final cut because celebrities might not be widely popular, their profile might fade or they could do something embarrassing, Edmonton Transit marketing supervisor Nathan Walters says.
While each line will be represented with a different colour on maps, ETS wanted something more noteworthy to develop local image and reputation, he says.
Animals didn’t resonate well in market research. As well, staff had to choose between popular related ideas, such as Edmonton vs. Capital, or River vs. Valley, Walters says.
“Our thought process was ‘Are we going to have two lines, one named River and one named Valley?’ From a city and identity perspective, which is more important, the river or the valley surrounding the river?”
So far, reaction to the names has been muted, Walters says.
“Generally speaking, I think the jury is still out. It’s quite early, the signage hasn’t really been displayed yet. Once that goes out, I anticipate getting a little more feedback.”
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