Alberta Announces Master Plan Aimed at Increasing Passenger Rail Service

Premier of Alberta Danielle Smith announces the government's master plan aimed at increasing passenger rail service in the province. (Screenshot Courtesy of the Alberta government via YouTube)

The Alberta government on April 29 announced a master plan aimed at increasing passenger rail service in the province.

“As Alberta experiences record population growth and evolving transportation needs, advancing passenger rail infrastructure is essential for enhancing accessibility, efficiency and connectivity across the province,” the Alberta government stated in a release.

According to the Alberta government, the Passenger Rail Plan, which will assess the feasibility of passenger rail in the province, including regional (intercity), commuter and high-speed services, “will look forward decades and identify concrete actions that can be taken now, as well as in the future, to build the optimal passenger rail system for the province.”

“A large and efficient passenger rail network stretching across the province has incredible potential,” said Premier of Alberta Danielle Smith. “It represents a forward-looking vision and is a mobility solution for our rapidly growing province and I’m excited to watch this plan take shape and bring us into the future. There’s a lot of work ahead of us, but I’m confident that we will build the network Albertans need to improve daily life and work, boost the economy and take away the stress of long-distance travel.”

The government’s vision is for an Alberta passenger rail system that includes public, private or hybrid passenger rail, including:

• A commuter rail system for the Calgary area that connects surrounding communities and the Calgary International Airport to downtown.
• A commuter rail system for the Edmonton area that connects surrounding communities and the Edmonton International Airport to downtown.
• Regional rail lines from Calgary and Edmonton to the Rocky Mountain parks.
• A regional rail line between Calgary and Edmonton, with a local transit hub in Red Deer.
• Municipal-led LRT systems in Calgary and Edmonton that integrate with the provincial passenger rail system.
• Rail hubs serving the major cities that would provide linkages between a commuter rail system, regional rail routes and municipal-led mass transit systems.

“Canada’s railways appreciate the Alberta government’s efforts to conduct a fact-based study on the potential for passenger rail service that recognizes the essential need to protect current and future freight rail capacity,” said Railway Association of Canada (RAC) President and CEO Marc Brazeau. “Any proposal to co-locate passenger service in freight corridors must demonstrate the ability to preserve the freight rail capacity required to move goods in support of the province’s economy, today and tomorrow. Rail is the greenest mode of ground transportation for both people and goods.”

The vision includes a province-led “Metrolinx-like” Crown corporation with a mandate to develop the infrastructure and oversee daily operations, fare collection/booking systems, system maintenance, and planning for future system expansion.

“At VIA Rail our vision for integrated mobility means dreaming of a future where a passenger can easily switch between commuter rail, light transit, transit buses, and regional trains in an agile and simple way,” said VIA Rail Canada President and CEO Mario Péloquin. “We’ve already initiated a number of exchanges with partners, and we intend to step up the pace in the coming months and years. I can assure you that as integrated mobility becomes an increasingly important topic of conversation in Alberta, VIA Rail will be there to play a unifying role.”

Alberta’s Passenger Rail Master Plan “will ensure government has the required information to make decisions based on where passenger rail delivers the best return on investment,” according to the government of Alberta. The plan will provide a cost-benefit analysis and define what is required by government, including a governance and delivery model, legislation, funding, and staging to implement passenger rail in Alberta. This work will include a 15-year delivery plan that will prioritize and sequence investments.

The Master Plan, the government of Alberta says, “will consider future growth, planning for the growing provincial population and considering the use of hydrogen-powered trains to ensure a robust and effective passenger rail system to serve Albertans for years to come.”

Development of the Master Plan will include engagement with Albertans to gain their perspectives for the future of passenger rail in Alberta.

Alberta’s government has released a Request for Expression of Interest (RFEI) to seek world-class knowledge and consultant services as a first step toward the development of the Passenger Rail Master Plan for Alberta. Following this process, a Request for Proposal (RFP) will be issued to select a consultant to develop the Passenger Rail Master Plan. The Master Plan is expected to be completed by summer 2025.