Fixed that for you.
Thanks for the feedback & we're continuing to listen. A lot has changed since those initial 2020 conversations and no final decision has been made. Today we had a meeting with WIX, which will be operating ARC, and they reminded us that the advantage of using an ARC card is that, as long as customers tap off within the 90-minute travel window, the fare will count toward a daily or monthly cap. This means that if you have reached your cap, you get to travel for free. This is designed for those commuters that would be regularly using the gondola on their way to work for example. So, the fare isn't the same for a frequent commuter compared to the occasional user. In any case, let us be clear: We live here and as part of the community we too want it to be accessible to families, seniors, youth, cyclists, etc. We really appreciate your feedback as it informs our project as it moves forward.
Thanks Jason and something we are trying to convey is that our business case has a diversified revenue portfolio and was reviewed by Steer Group, an unquestioned world leader in transportation infrastructure, in the fall last year. This review included a full bottom-up ridership and revenue projection by Steer, which was the basis for a full business case produced by leaders in PWC’s infrastructure group. This was a comprehensive expert review of the feasibility of our project and we can assure you that we wouldn't have invested more than $1M of purely private sector money on assessing its viability for nothing. We have been methodical, we have had many leading professionals review our business case, and adapted the project to Edmonton's realities. We are also fully de-risking the City. All these details will be made public in our real estate and infrastructure agreements sometime in mid-July before we go to Executive Committee on Aug 10 (and City Council on Aug 15).
That's exactly part of our plan. Connectivity is a big part of our project. Connecting missing links and connecting main streets creates vibrancy, visibility and opportunity. One of our favourite spots Downtown is the promenade on Macdonald Drive. It's such a beautiful and unique view with lovely mature trees and benches, yet we barely see anyone hang out there. It's only 1 block from Jasper and across from the historic Fairmont Hotel Macdonald, yet because it's so hard to get to, it's forgotten. Same with the River Valley. It is our pride and joy, yet many only truly experienced it during the pandemic. In reality, if you don't live walking distance from the river valley, if you have mobility issues, if you need access to washrooms or have kids, it's not that easy to get to the river. We look at it, but we don't get to be in it. This is what happens when things are disconnected, in theory they may be the best places ever but if it's not easy to get to them, they lose appeal. We aim to remedy this, and the City is extremely excited about the potential our gondola has to be the catalyst for vibrancy in so many of their city plans. We are actually about to post a blog about this very soon!
