Government of Canada and AB invest in public transit for Edmonton

April 30, 2009
The Honourable Rona Ambrose, Canada’s Minister of Labour, and the Premier of Alberta Ed Stelmach, today announced that both the Government of Canada and Government of Alberta are investing up to $100 million each in support of a number of transit projects in Edmonton, Alberta.

“Investments in public transit will not only create jobs and stimulate the economy, but will also leave the lasting links that will pave the way for Edmonton’s growth and prosperity in the future,” said Minister Ambrose. “Our Government is proud to work with our partners to create jobs, encourage environmental sustainability and help improve the quality of life for the families of Edmonton.”

“This major investment in public transit will help create and maintain jobs for Albertans,” said Premier Stelmach. “By encouraging Albertans to use the Light Rail Transit, it will also help increase traffic safety for both motorists and pedestrians and reduce the province’s carbon footprint.”

The priority projects identified in the Edmonton package include:

• extending the Northeast Light Rail Transit by expanding the present light rail system from Clareview to Gorman Town Centre;
  * station upgrades that will involve lengthening platforms along the South Light Rail Transit line to allow for additional capacity associated with longer 5 car trains; and,
• further investments to three park-and-ride stations and signaling system upgrades to facilitate moving people through the transit system in Edmonton more quickly.

The total cost of the priority projects identified in the Edmonton package is approximately $300 million. The federal government will contribute up to one-third of total eligible costs, to a maximum federal contribution of $100 million. The province is also providing $100 million toward the projects. The balance of the funding will be provided by the City of Edmonton.

“These priority projects align with Edmonton’s goals and will have significant impacts City wide, in terms of how we move people and minimize our environmental impact,” said Mayor Stephen Mandel. “This brings needed dollars to some of the most significant issues in our growing city, and the full participation of all orders of Government is appreciated and needed to make meaningful progress.”

Preliminary planning and design will soon be underway on these projects, and construction could begin as early as this summer for the park-and-ride, signaling, and platform extension components. The Northeast LRT could begin soon thereafter.
Beyond this announcement, the Government of Canada is taking important steps to support economic growth. Canada’s Economic Action Plan, announced in Budget 2009, is a balanced stimulus plan that includes massive investments in infrastructure, tax relief and transfers. This plan will provide close to $12 billion in new infrastructure stimulus funding over two years, which will address needs in communities across Canada, as well as contributing to long-term economic growth through investments in public infrastructure, such as roads, water treatment, green energy and transit.

Central to Alberta’s Budget 2009 is Alberta’s Capital Plan, which supports $7.2 billion in 2009-10 and a record $23.2 billion over three years to build roads, health care facilities, schools and other public infrastructure. This year’s investment alone will support over 80,000 jobs across the economy directly benefitting Albertans and Alberta communities. This capital investment complements the government’s four-point plan for economic recovery, which calls for keeping an eye on spending, using savings to protect programs and services for Albertans while keeping taxes low, continuing to invest in infrastructure, and promoting the province on the world stage.

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