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Regional Transit

So, essentially what I'm seeing is that the main concern is transit services in the region being "privatized"? Like as in run as a business for profit? What!? That isn't what a regional transit commission/authority is at all, but I don't need to tell you guys that.

Don't get me wrong, I support the transit workers union and I agree that they should have a seat at the table in this new commission, but here they're making an issue out of something that'll never happen.
 
The Edmonton Metropolitan Transit Services Commission now has a website where they will post details about previous and upcoming meetings, news about the commission, etc. It was originally expected to launch in mid-2022, so I'm very pleased that it was launched early. It makes lots of sense to have a central hub for information while the commission is getting up and running, rather than right when they're about to start services.

The website is https://emtsc.ca

For those who are interested, here's the responses to all four of the questions I emailed them in February. I was pretty darn pleased with how polite they were, and the amount of effort they put into researching and answering my questions.

1. When the service is launched in 2022, will local transit services (EG FST, Stat Transit) completely cease to exist as legal entities? Do buses, stops, etc, count as 'transit assets' which will be rebranded?
The EMTSC will represent a new entity that will be responsible for delivering regional transit and mobility services in 2022 for the eight member municipalities, as follows:
Member MunicipalityConventional Transit Services to be delivered by the Commission
City of EdmontonRegional only
St. AlbertRegional and local
City of BeaumontRegional only (no local services currently exist)
Town of DevonRegional (once planned and implemented by the Commission)
City of Fort SaskatchewanRegional and local
City of LeducRegional and local
City of Spruce GroveRegional and local
Town of Stony PlainRegional (once implemented in May)
For the above services to be delivered by the Commission, the re-branding of participating municipalities’ assets such as buses and stops will take place gradually over time beginning in the 2022-2023 timeframe.
ETS will continue to run as a stand-alone entity responsible for delivering local transit services (i.e. conventional transit services) that operate within Edmonton for several years to come. Additionally, specialized transit is expected to remain with member municipalities in the initial stages of transition. Because of this, municipality branding for specialized transit and Edmonton local services will remain to exist after 2022 or until a decision is made to integrate these services regionally.
2. Will the EMTSC use a different name for its branding (similar to Translink, GoTransit, etc)?
The Edmonton Metropolitan Transit Services Commission (EMTSC) represents the initial legal name of the regional transit services commission and will not be the eventual operating name that the commission will deliver services under. An operating name (e.g. like Translink or GoTransit) will be determined through future branding and public engagement activities.

3. Will current transit staff be transitioned to the EMTSC, or will they need to apply and compete with new applicants for jobs?

Existing municipal transit services will operate in a business-as-usual manner over 2021. Until Commission management is in place, policies are developed, and a service delivery plan is built, it is not known what positions will be impacted or created. As this information becomes available it will be communicated to the respective municipality workforces.

4. Would the board consider launching a website before April 2022 so that people from across the region can access a consistent source for information regarding the EMTSC's onboarding progress?

Following the passing of the Commission’s first operating budget, work to establish a website will occur and the new website will serve as the authoritative source of EMTSC information.
 
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Sorry, i searched several times for a transit network redesign thread (which i thought we had, idk sometimes this site doesn't search/organize properly for me) but couldn't find anything; so i'll share this here because it's somewhat related:
I was down on River Valley road today, thinking about transit. This area has a lot of our best-used river parks, with Victoria Park hosting all kinds of rentals in the summer and skating all winter. down the road, just across the river, Hawrelak hosts some of the biggest festivals in the province by daily attendance, with access via a single gate and some bike paths. It's perennially awkward for people outside of walking/biking distance to access these places, especially during festivals. There's nothing on the Bus Network Redsign map, butI think a transit solution could solve this.
Hawrelak bus proposal.JPG

I came up with a bus route that would connect the West-Central River Valley to the LRT, allowing for rider interchange and easy access to the entire transit system. Starting at U of A, the bus would drive down 87th and go down Groat Road. this would be limited stops, like an express. it would only stop at the Hawrelak/Emily Murphy parks stops, before continuing across the bridge. once on River Valley Road, the bus would stop at both Victoria Park parking lots, as well as the Glenora Club, before climbing the hill to the Legislature. the bus would stop at the TC there, before continuing to Corona Station, where it would stop along 107 street for. The bus would finally run up to 102nd, where it would turn right, stop next to Alex Decoteau, then continue around the block to Jasper, where it would do the return run. The end result is a circulator bus running from LRT stations (and all 3 lines) at both ends that connects two of our biggest festival/special event parks in the Valley. The logic of having the two end-points (instead of running out of just U of A the way Heritage Festival buses do, for example) is to reduce turnaround bottlenecks, provide better options and more convenient access to the rest of the transit network, and to accommodate park-hopping for riders not trying to leave the valley.
To make this work, the bus would have to run evenings and weekends, year-round. maybe not super frequently, but it needs to run during leisure hours so people use it, and it needs to run even when no special events are on. Evenings and weekends are when this area is busiest, and the bus would both see the most use and get the most exposure (so people think to use it another time) This is so people recognize/remember the bus is there, and trust it to run serviceably. that way they actually choose to take transit, rather than drive to the park and magically expect to find a parking spot in the middle of the river valley (for example, the victoria skating oval was a shitshow all winter this year, every friday-saturday-sunday. people weren't expecting crowds and no one planned to park and walk down, it was a mess. the city had marshals in the lot all the time to deal with it). People need to know that there is a reliable bus to get there where they want to go.
This would also improve accessibility to the valley for the mobility impaired; Hawrelak, Victoria, and the RVR trail are all pretty tame and walk/rollable, but getting to them requires a car right now. even one of those vincinity short buses would solve that. As well, having transit in the valley would help out-of-towners access it. we don't want parking and auto traffic in the valley, but that's how people coming in to Edmonton tend to navigate the city. by offering bussing, tied to the existing LRT and park and rides we have, transit becomes a more reasonable option. As well, we're pushing for more transit usage region-wide; transit to Edmonton's river valley festivals needs to be part of that. we gotta build habits and positive associations with the bus, a handy bus that gets you to the river valley from the train would be a big part of that.
 
Looks great, especially when connecting with the River Valley. I wonder if a second route from the University to the Muttart Station would also be popular. This route would connect the University, Capital/Metro Line LRT, Walterdale/Kinsmen, Rossdale, the Gondola, the Edmonton Riverboat, Muttart Conservatory, Edmonton Ski Club and Valley Line LRT.
 
Paul Jankowski will become the commission's first CEO, starting on May 17th 2021.

"Leaving his role as Commissioner in the Regional Municipality of York’s Transportation Services Department, Jankowski will be responsible for leading the EMTSC as it creates an integrated, regional transit system. His most recent experience leading intermunicipal collaboration and implementing an integrated transportation service in the Greater Toronto Area provides him with tactical experience in this field."

Press release
 
Totally random question: does anyone know where the shot at 47s was taken from in the EMTSC's intro vid? Is it from somewhere in the city, or is it just stock footage?
I'm thinking it's stock footage from somewhere that isn't Edmonton, but the way everything else in the video seems to be shots from the metro area I wasn't sure.
 
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Totally random question: does anyone know where the shot at 47s was taken from in the EMTSC's intro vid? Is it from somewhere in the city, or is it just stock footage?
I'm thinking it's stock footage from somewhere that isn't Edmonton, but the way everything else in the video seems to be shots from the metro area I wasn't sure.
Looks like Istanbul based on the topography, Minaret at the right side of the shot and the many apartments visible in the distance.
 
Amongst others -- notice how none of the Counties are actually participating. That's always going to be the case with an opt-in system.
Especially Strathcona County - they have their oil refinery money and could care less about us proles living in the city. They want to keep their fancy double decker buses.
 
ETS is also not rolled into this commission either for the time being, and how to integrate the two agencies eventually is going to be a formidable problem.

Towards that end, I assume some of the routes in the Bus Network Redesign were tailored for eventual incorporation into regional routes.
 
ETS is also not rolled into this commission either for the time being, and how to integrate the two agencies eventually is going to be a formidable problem.

Towards that end, I assume some of the routes in the Bus Network Redesign were tailored for eventual incorporation into regional routes.
That's sort of true. Their regional services are getting rolled in near the beginning, but their urban services and LRT are not. I believe adoption of the latter will be considered by the commission five years after operation begin.
 

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