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LRT Expansion Planning

The $760 million for LRT projects in todays budget. Is this new money for expansions or just money promised previously for currently under construction LRT?
I'm pretty sure it's for existing expansions. There would be a lot more fanfare if they were funding a new LRT line anywhere.

The budget has been pretty disappointing in terms of new capital projects. Which is a shame, because that seems like a good fit for unreliable oil royalty surpluses.
 
Nothing in planning north of the tracks yet. any expansion would be to the phantom hospital location.
 
^there was $20 million in the city's 2023-2026 capital budget set aside for land acquisition along 113 st north of 127 Ave, and exploratory surveys and design work regarding the Castle Downs extension. there was a key council vote in 2021 that reaffirmed that the city's next expansion to build would be the Metro Line to Castle Downs as opposed to south to Desrochers.
edit: council vote was in Early 2022. here's an article. The extension to Castle Downs is the next to be funded and built.
 
Not sure if this is the right thread for this but, here is my idea for Edmonton's Rail Transit in the relatively distant future. Keep in mind this is after decades of densification and growth in the city. Also keep in mind is this is a fantasy concept, I'm not suggesting this is feasible or even possible but this is what I would like to see Edmonton's rail transit infrastructure look like in 30-50 years.

The lines and changes are in order of most possible to most insane.

Here is the full map:
Edmonton Future Rail Transit.png

As you can probably see, the goal here is creating connections farther out into the suburbs while intensifying the density of rail in the core.

The Valley Line:
I didn't feel it necessary to include a photo of the Valley Line as the changes are pretty obvious from the map. I just extended it south to Beaumont.

The Capital Line:
Capital Line.png

Basically, it extends south as far as Leduc, including a connection to the airport and also to the north where it connects to downtown Fort Saskatchewan. There will be a number of new stations along the route in the Horse Hill development and other likely areas of development in the south

The Metro Line:
Metro Line Shakeup.png

In my plan the metro line extends north as is expected in the current plan, with the addition of 2 new stations in St Albert. Currently, the metro line terminates at Health Sciences / Jubilee, here it turns east down University Ave. Then it heads north at Strathcona Yards, which I see becoming a major transit hub with a High Speed Station as well as a stop on 3 different LRT lines. It then follows the same path as the Valley Line but due to incompatibility of the High Floor and Low Floor systems they can't use the same stations and probably not the same track so it would either require a grade separation or follow the opposite side of the road. It then turns west along 98th Ave probably stopping at Forest Heights, Ottewell and Capilano or something like that and continues heading east. Then it has a stop at Refinery Row before crossing the Henday and having a station at Bethel Transit Centre in Sherwood Park.

Festival Line:
Festival Line.png

This essentially follows the same path as the streetcar in the centre of the city traveling over the High Level. This could be an issue as this track is only one-way. Either it could be widened to hold 2 ways of rail travel or some creative stops and other solutions. Either way it also extends south to the new transit mega-hub at Strathcona Yards. It also follows the length of Jasper Ave and then turns north at 124th st. It could be grade separated along Jasper but I think it should be at grade on 124th and turn Westmount and the other neighborhoods along that stretch of 124th into Edmonton's first streetcar suburbs. It turns east after and goes through Blatchford where it connects to the Metro Line. Then it joins 118 Ave where it will spearhead a renewal of that area, which if properly built out could be one of the best area in the city.

The Energy Line:
Energy Line.png

This is by-far my most insane plan. The Energy Line Starts at West Edmonton Mall and heads west, splitting at Meadowlark which would become a new TOD project along the lines of Bonnie Doon or Brentwood in Burnaby. It then heads down Buena Vista and stops at the Zoo and Laurier Park. There is a new bridge constructed at Laurier Park. It then enters a tunnel under Belgravia where there could maybe be a Belgravia West Station? Then it re-emerges and has an interchange with the Capital Line at South Campus. Then it follows 72 Ave and interchanges with the Festival and Metro Lines at the Strathcona Yards mega-hub. Next it heads north and follows the Metro Line for a while along 82 Ave where it splits at Bonnie Doon with the Energy continuing east along 82 ave and the Sherwood Park Freeway instead of going North. It terminates at a Park and Ride at Ordze Transit Centre in Sherwood Park.
 
^ nice, but I would go for a new line that goes from WEM then connect around -> calling wood -> terwillegar -> century park -> millwoods. Maybe also a split line starting from windermere -> terwillegar then all the way to mill woods as well
 
^ nice, but I would go for a new line that goes from WEM then connect around -> calling wood -> terwillegar -> century park -> millwoods. Maybe also a split line starting from windermere -> terwillegar then all the way to mill woods as well
That's a good idea, maybe a loop line that goes through the suburbs and really connects the whole system together
 
Not sure if this is the right thread for this but, here is my idea for Edmonton's Rail Transit in the relatively distant future. Keep in mind this is after decades of densification and growth in the city. Also keep in mind is this is a fantasy concept, I'm not suggesting this is feasible or even possible but this is what I would like to see Edmonton's rail transit infrastructure look like in 30-50 years.

The lines and changes are in order of most possible to most insane.

Here is the full map:
View attachment 462153
As you can probably see, the goal here is creating connections farther out into the suburbs while intensifying the density of rail in the core.

The Valley Line:
I didn't feel it necessary to include a photo of the Valley Line as the changes are pretty obvious from the map. I just extended it south to Beaumont.

The Capital Line:
View attachment 462157
Basically, it extends south as far as Leduc, including a connection to the airport and also to the north where it connects to downtown Fort Saskatchewan. There will be a number of new stations along the route in the Horse Hill development and other likely areas of development in the south

The Metro Line:
View attachment 462159
In my plan the metro line extends north as is expected in the current plan, with the addition of 2 new stations in St Albert. Currently, the metro line terminates at Health Sciences / Jubilee, here it turns east down University Ave. Then it heads north at Strathcona Yards, which I see becoming a major transit hub with a High Speed Station as well as a stop on 3 different LRT lines. It then follows the same path as the Valley Line but due to incompatibility of the High Floor and Low Floor systems they can't use the same stations and probably not the same track so it would either require a grade separation or follow the opposite side of the road. It then turns west along 98th Ave probably stopping at Forest Heights, Ottewell and Capilano or something like that and continues heading east. Then it has a stop at Refinery Row before crossing the Henday and having a station at Bethel Transit Centre in Sherwood Park.

Festival Line:
View attachment 462160
This essentially follows the same path as the streetcar in the centre of the city traveling over the High Level. This could be an issue as this track is only one-way. Either it could be widened to hold 2 ways of rail travel or some creative stops and other solutions. Either way it also extends south to the new transit mega-hub at Strathcona Yards. It also follows the length of Jasper Ave and then turns north at 124th st. It could be grade separated along Jasper but I think it should be at grade on 124th and turn Westmount and the other neighborhoods along that stretch of 124th into Edmonton's first streetcar suburbs. It turns east after and goes through Blatchford where it connects to the Metro Line. Then it joins 118 Ave where it will spearhead a renewal of that area, which if properly built out could be one of the best area in the city.

The Energy Line:
View attachment 462158
This is by-far my most insane plan. The Energy Line Starts at West Edmonton Mall and heads west, splitting at Meadowlark which would become a new TOD project along the lines of Bonnie Doon or Brentwood in Burnaby. It then heads down Buena Vista and stops at the Zoo and Laurier Park. There is a new bridge constructed at Laurier Park. It then enters a tunnel under Belgravia where there could maybe be a Belgravia West Station? Then it re-emerges and has an interchange with the Capital Line at South Campus. Then it follows 72 Ave and interchanges with the Festival and Metro Lines at the Strathcona Yards mega-hub. Next it heads north and follows the Metro Line for a while along 82 Ave where it splits at Bonnie Doon with the Energy continuing east along 82 ave and the Sherwood Park Freeway instead of going North. It terminates at a Park and Ride at Ordze Transit Centre in Sherwood Park.
We have to born again at least several times to see that much expansion happen 🤣🤔
 
We have to born again at least several times to see that much expansion happen 🤣🤔
See the beginning of the post, this is just fantasy and what I would like to see. Not supposed to be 100% realistic but just kind of a thought experiment into what the future of rail transit in Edmonton could look like after several more decades of growth and (fingers crossed) better investment from government and a marginal increase in public support for transit. We already know that Edmonton is trying to double its population to 2 million without expanding a whole lot further (Only Horse Hill and some land to the south for outward expansion in the foreseeable future). With higher density means more and better quality transit even in car-centric North America. If Edmonton itself grows to 2 million, the outlying communities combined could put the Metro at close to 3 million and if those communities are smart, they should also go for densification which we are actually seeing happen (very slowly) in some of these places. Overall while it's definitely fantasy and I'm not trying to predict what the system will look like in 2070, why not shoot for the stars?
 
I think an east-west connection of some kind will eventually be needed, with increasing density around Whyte Avenue and the University.
 
Following suggestions from @fungus_eater I have added a new line that for simplicities sake I will call the Parkland Line (though I'm not sure if this name fits or not will take suggestions).

Parkland Line.png

Basically it's sort of a suburban loop line in a way. (Not a complete loop I know but if you change at the Valley Line and then the Capital it's basically a loop). It starts in the north at Stadium where it interchanges with the Capital Line and heads west along 112 / 111 Ave for a very long time. It crosses the Metro Line at Kingsway Royal Alex. It turns south where 111 Ave becomes Mayfield. It cross the Valley and Energy Lines at WEM and continues south along 170st, cross the Whytemud into Callingwood and dives down into the river valley at the country club, following the road. It has a new bridge just west of the Terwillegar Footbridge and heads up Rabbit Hill road on the other side. Next it turns southwest at Terwillegar drive. It turns east at 23 Ave and continues until it terminates at Mill Woods.

Here is how it connects with the rest of the system:
Parkland Line Full Map.png

There is potential to complete the loop by crossing the river again around Rundle Area and then going south through Capilano and so on.
 

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