For residents of Southeast Calgary, an issue that has not faded over the years is the need for the Southeast leg of the LRT network which would run from the soon to be opened South Calgary Health Centre, to the downtown core.
This project has been promised, and put off, many times over the years. Some have used the criticism of low ridership that has kept the LRT off the map, others have claimed the large gap of non-residential land that sits in between downtown Calgary and the growing population of Wards 12 and 9 as the cause.
I, along with the vast majority of residents in Ward 12 who have no access to the city's LRT service, a service that the rest of Calgary enjoys, fully believe that an LRT link is vital to Southeast Calgary and Ward 12, one of the fastest growing areas of the city.
With in the next few years, Southeast Calgary will be home to the new South Calgary Health Centre, recreation facilities, shopping districts and a population explosion that will see more than 88,000 residents in Ward 12 alone.
There have been recent discussions regarding funds that may be freed up from MSI and GreenTrip programs that may be put towards the creation of the SETWAY. With this in mind, I release a study on the comparison of both LRT and BRT infrastructure, as well as an analysis of the Southeast TransitWay (SETWAY).
SETWAY - A Comprehensive Analysis of the Southeast Transit Way
Thanks for the interesting read, it is good to get the discussions going.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I am worried that any temporary solution with the BRT will just delay the full SELRT.
If we do go ahead with the SETWAY then we need to ensure that any new infrastructure that is built is designed for LRT first, then modified for BRT. The transition cost (both in time and money) from BRT to LRT is not negligable. But if it is designed properly then this can be controlled. But that is a big if.