Detailed Planning For Calgary-Banff Train Not In Province's Three-Year Plan

Canmore residents hoping Alberta's proposed passenger train will stop in town may be waiting a while longer for an answer.

Alberta has mapped out a $60-billion passenger rail network that could eventually carry people between Calgary and Banff for roughly $40 to $70 a trip.

But if you live in Canmore, there’s still one fairly important question: will the train actually stop here?

During a provincial passenger rail information session Sept.15, Alberta Transportation officials confirmed that Canmore has not yet been selected as a station on the proposed Calgary-Banff route, and detailed planning for that corridor isn't part of the province's current three-year plan.

The update comes two weeks after Canmore council voted unanimously to advocate for a local station if the province moves ahead with passenger rail through the Bow Valley.

Bow Valley Insider asked provincial officials during the session what would determine whether Canmore gets a station and when local communities can expect that decision.

Chris Genteel, director of passenger rail with Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors, said those decisions will come during more detailed planning for the Calgary-Banff corridor.

“Right now, the study of the Calgary to Banff corridor is not in our current three-year plan,” Genteel said.

He also cautioned communities against reading too much into the province's current maps.

“If your community name wasn't on the original vision map, it hasn't made it onto a version of the map to date. That doesn't mean that you're not being seriously considered,” Genteel said.

“We've been very open that we haven't selected specific routes and we haven't selected specific station locations.”

Once more detailed corridor planning begins, Genteel said the province intends to engage communities along the proposed route about potential stations.

The province's Passenger Rail Master Plan identifies a higher-speed regional service between Calgary, Banff and Bow Valley communities as part of Alberta's proposed 30-year rail network. 

Trains on the Calgary-Banff route are envisioned travelling at more than 160 km/h, with the provincial plan contemplating up to one train an hour.

But the maps remain conceptual.

The province's executive summary specifically identifies Canmore and Mînî Thnî as examples of additional station locations that could be selected and confirmed during the next stage of planning.

That distinction has become increasingly important in Canmore.

Earlier this month, council directed Mayor Sean Krausert to advocate for the town to receive a station if passenger rail moves ahead.

“It’s not our decision whether or not a passenger rail will run through our community,” Krausert said during the Sept. 1 council meeting. “However, it is a question that we need to ask ourselves: If it runs through our community, should there be a stop?”

“I think that the answer has to be unequivocally yes.”

Council's decision did not amount to an endorsement of the passenger rail project itself. Rather, councillors argued that if a train travels through the Bow Valley, Canmore should have access to it.

A local station could potentially allow residents to travel to Calgary and its airport without a vehicle, provide another commuting option for Bow Valley workers and bring visitors directly into Canmore.

Without one, Krausert argued the community could watch those benefits pass straight through town.

“The downside of it not stopping is huge,” he said during the meeting.

A $60-Billion Vision, But Not A Construction Project Yet

Alberta's proposed passenger rail system is ambitious.

The 30-year network envisions high-speed trains between Edmonton and Calgary via Red Deer, higher-speed service between Calgary and Banff and commuter and airport rail around the province's two largest cities.

The province estimates designing and constructing the entire network, including tracks, stations, trains, land and maintenance facilities, would cost approximately $60 billion in 2025 dollars.

Its modelling estimates the network could eventually carry about 80,000 one-way passenger trips per day by 2055, including approximately 17,000 daily regional trips on the combined Calgary-Edmonton-Banff services.

But those numbers shouldn't be mistaken for a construction commitment.

Rob Lawson, executive director of passenger rail with the Ministry of Transportation and Economic Corridors, said the province still hasn't determined routes or station locations.

The $15 million currently committed over three years is instead being used for early planning, including a connection between Edmonton International Airport and Edmonton's LRT system, initial planning for a central Calgary station and engagement with private industry.

When asked during Monday's webinar when Albertans could expect shovels in the ground, Lawson said it would be “years from now.”

Genteel went further.

“It could be many years before there's shovels in the ground,” he said. 

“We haven't chosen the station locations, we haven't chosen the alignments. So if I ask you today where should I put my shovel, nobody really has an answer to that.”

What Happens Next

For now, Alberta is turning to the private sector.

The province is consulting with investors, contractors and engineering firms ahead of a planned request for expressions of interest later this year. 

The process is intended to determine how much of the network private companies may be willing to finance, build, operate or maintain, potentially with limited government funding.

The province expects to release that request in December, close submissions in April 2027 and assess them next spring before determining further steps.