Bus-Based Mass Transit for 1.25 Million People

Mass Transit Network at 1.25 Million People

As part of The City Plan implementation, the City completed a mass transit technical study (16.23 MB) that identifies a mass transit network to support a population horizon of 1.25 million people. This 1.25 million population horizon mass transit network includes continued expansion of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) network and development of bus-based mass transit to complement the expanded LRT network.

Bus-Based Mass Transit for 1.25 Million People

Following completion of the technical study to identify the mass transit network for the 1.25 million population horizon, the next step was identifying candidate corridors for the non-LRT (bus-based) mass transit. At the 1.25 million population horizon, 3 city-wide Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes and 15 bus-based district mass transit routes have been identified for development.

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Routes

The following 3 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes have been identified for development at the 1.25 million population horizon.

BRT Route - B1

The B1 BRT route ( map) will create a key north-south connection between Castle Downs and Century Park via Downtown, Whyte Avenue and the University. This route is made up of the following segments:

B1 North: connects Castle Downs to Downtown by way of 153 Avenue, 97 Street and 101 Street (south of 118 Avenue).
B1 Central: connects Downtown to Whyte Avenue by way of 101 Street, Bellamy Hill, Walterdale Hill and 109 Street resulting in using Walterdale Bridge as the recommended river crossing. Other river-crossing alternatives will be explored through further planning.
B1 South: connects Whyte Avenue to Century Park by way of Calgary Trail and 23 Avenue.

BRT Route - B2

The B2 BRT route (map) will create a key east-west connection between West Edmonton Mall and Bonnie Doon via the University of Alberta. This route is made up of the following segments:

B2 West: connects West Edmonton Mall to South Campus by way of 87 Avenue, Whitemud Drive, Fox Drive and Belgravia Road. The route crosses the North Saskatchewan River using the Quesnell Bridge.
B2 University: connects South Campus to the University of Alberta by way of 109 Street and 87 Avenue.
B2 Whyte Avenue: connects University and Garneau areas to Bonnie Doon by way of Whyte Avenue. Public realm considerations and improvements outlined in the Old Strathcona Public Realm Strategy will be considered in this segment of the B2 BRT during future stages.

BRT Route - B6

This route will run from Ambleside to the University following the existing and planned dedicated bus lanes on Terwillegar Drive, Whitemud Drive and Fox Drive (already partially under construction as part of the Terwillegar Drive expansion). It will extend to the University of Alberta main campus by using infrastructure upgrades along the B2 alignment.

District Routes

Fifteen district bus-based mass transit routes (9 Frequent-Enhanced Corridor Service Routes and 6 Rapid Limited-Stop Node Service Routes) have also been identified for development at the 1.25 million population horizon. The City is currently undertaking work to determine the route alignments (which streets the buses will run on) for the 15 district routes.

These district routes will supplement the LRT and 3 planned BRT routes, helping extend mass transit service to all quadrants of the city and support growth at key urban centres (nodes) and main streets (corridors). Some of these district routes may eventually evolve into city-wide BRT routes as the city grows past the 1.25 million population horizon.

Local bus service will be unchanged as a result of this work, except in cases where the local bus service is redundant with the mass transit network. Local bus service generally describes the current ETS bus network which serves neighbourhoods and local destinations, and connects to other local routes and/or higher orders of transit (like mass transit).

Bus-Based Mass Transit Planning Timeline

The City uses the Project Development and Delivery Model (PDDM) model for infrastructure.

We are currently in the strategy stage for the citywide BRT routes and district bus-based mass transit routes for the 1.25 million population horizon. This stage has 4 phases.

Phase 1: Defining Bus-Based Mass Transit in Edmonton (2022)

In this first phase, we sought to determine how bus-based mass transit routes would look and operate, such as the potential vehicle, service and right-of-way combinations for different route types. We also explored if there were any opportunities for rail

Phase 1: Defining Bus-Based Mass Transit in Edmonton (2022)

In this first phase, we sought to determine how bus-based mass transit routes would look and operate, such as the potential vehicle, service and right-of-way combinations for different route types. We also explored if there were any opportunities for rail-based transit beyond LRT.

Phase 2: Mass Transit Impacts (2023)

There are a lot of things to consider when it comes to planning and designing new transit infrastructure. Five technical studies (transit operations, land use, mobility, greenhouse gas (GHG) assessment and an equity assessment), as well as public engagement were used to ensure we are developing a bus-based mass transit network that works for everyone.

Phase 3: Route Alignments (2023-2024)

An evaluation and decision-making process that included the technical studies, public engagement as well as a set of mass transit implementation principles and policies in The City Plan, was used to inform initial route alignments (which streets the bus-based mass transit routes will run along) for the 3 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) routes. This phase also included an equity assessment to ensure the needs and perspectives of under-represented communities were included.

The recommended alignments for the 3 BRT routes were presented at the August 27, 2024 Urban Planning Committee (item 7.2).

Phase 4: Design Options and 1.25 Million Network Staging Plan (2024-2025) - We Are Here

The 3 BRT routes are now moving into the concept planning stage, which involves confirming the recommended BRT route alignments and the station and stop locations. Funding for the initial concept planning for the BRT routes for the 1.25 million population horizon was approved by City Council as part of the 2023-2026 Capital Budget.

Funding for detailed design and construction will be put forward as part of a future Capital Budget cycle once the concept planning is complete. Route alignment planning for the 15 bus-based district routes is still underway. Once complete, the district routes will also advance to the concept planning phase.

Bus-Based Mass Transit for 1.25 Million People

Mass Transit Network at 1.25 Million People