With construction of the first phase of the Valley Line LRT well underway, the City isn't wasting any time moving forward with the second leg of the 27-kilometre transit project. Where the southeast stage of the project will connect Mill Woods to the downtown core, Valley Line West will extend the line and bring low-floor rapid transit to the edge of Edmonton at Lewis Farms. The City is now launching an engagement effort focused on finalizing this stretch of the project and is seeking to establish citizen working groups that can lend local perspectives to the plan.

LRT network plan, image via City of Edmonton

The neighbourhoods along the corridor have been divided into five distinct zones so that area-specific interests and concerns can be adequately addressed. Construction plans, traffic impacts, landscape design, and non-resident parking issues are some of the common subjects that will be discussed across the working groups. The engagement exercise has been crafted to facilitate a dialogue between the project team and the community, who together, will identify lingering issues and analyze ways to mitigate impacts related to detailed design and construction.

A rendering of the proposed Misericordia Station, image via City of Edmonton

For each group, local organizations and community leagues will have seats at the table alongside two zone-specific, peer-selected community representatives. These representatives will be appointed at a round of public meetings this month: 

87 Avenue (178 Street - Lewis Farms) Zone
Belmead Community Hall
Date: Wednesday, August 16, 2017
Time: 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Location: 9109 - 182 Street

87 Avenue (Meadowlark - 178 Street) Zone
West Meadowlark Community Hall
Date: Thursday, August 17, 2017
Time: 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Location: 9311 - 165 Street

Stony Plain Road (Groat Road - 159 Street) Zone
West End Christian Reformed Church
Date: Tuesday, August 22, 2017
Time: 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Location: 10015 149 Street

Downtown (102 Street - Groat Road) Zone
Robertson-Wesley United Church
Date: Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Time: 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Location: 10209 123 Street

156 Street (100 Avenue - 87 Avenue) Zone
West Jasper / Sherwood Community Hall
Date: Thursday, August 24, 2017
Time: 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Location: 9620- 152 Street

Glenora Stop rendering, image via City of Edmonton

The Valley Line West project received funding through the Government of Canada's Public Transit Infrastructure Fund in 2016 to review the preliminary design completed three years prior. Revisiting the early plan allows the City to determine whether any changes have occurred since the original work was conducted. The review will include the assessment of two busy intersections — 149 Street/Stony Plain Road and 178 Street/87 Avenue — to ensure the proposed pedestrian crossings are still suitable.

The federal money also allows officials to decide the most appropriate project delivery method and subsequently develop a business case that will form the basis for construction funding. The City is hoping to initiate the procurement phase as early as 2018. When additional funding is secured, it would take approximately one year to select a contractor and another five years to complete construction on the line.