Edmonton council agrees to borrow $585M to extend Capital Line LRT south

A new LRT line will link Century Park to north of Ellerslie Road in south Edmonton but the City of Edmonton will be paying $242 million more than originally budgeted.

City council passed first reading of a bylaw Wednesday to borrow money to build the 4.5-kilometre high-floor LRT Capital Line South extension. Originally, the city was to pay $343 million but now it will spend $585 million.

Mayor Amarjeet Sohi said the city needs to invest in public transit in the south part of the city, the fastest growing community in Edmonton. He added that transportation is expensive for an average household.

"Affordability and access to quality public services is at the forefront of every decision that I make sitting in this chair," Sohi said. 

"If we don't build mass transit, then we're continuing to force people to make choices, which are very, very expensive choices — which is to buy a second car or a third car."

The Capital Line extension includes an LRT underpass at 23rd Avenue, bridges across Blackmud Creek and Anthony Henday Drive, stations at Twin Brooks and Heritage Valley North and an operations and maintenance facility south of Anthony Henday Drive.

The project went to market in June 2022 to identify bidders to design and build the line. The city issued a request for proposals to the two shortlisted bidders in March this year. 

The bids received for the main Design-Build contract exceeded the funds allocated within the approved capital project budget.

Use it or lose it

The project is expected to cost $1.34 billion total. The federal and provincial governments are contributing $742 million combined through the joint Investing in Canada infrastructure Program (ICIP), said Bruce Ferguson, branch manager of LRT expansion and renewal.

"If the project was cancelled, then the city would lose all $742 million," Ferguson told council. 

The intergovernmental collaboration is one reason Ward Anirniq Coun. Erin Rutherford voted in favour of the project.

All three levels of government want an LRT, she said, but the federal and provincial governments "want it built within a certain spec."

Ward Nakota Isga Coun. Andrew Knack, who was a huge advocate for the Valley Line West LRT, also supports the expansion south to serve a growing population. 

"We are seeing over and over and over again, across jurisdictions across the world, that trains just move far more people," Knack said. "There's no more efficient mode right now."

Knack noted the increase of people taking the Valley Line Southeast LRT in the first six months of the line's life.

That train transported 223,000 riders in April, compared to 138,000 people when it opened in November.

First reading passed by 9-3 vote

City council was not united in the initial vote: councillors Tim Cartmell, Sarah Hamilton and Karen Principe voted against the borrowing bylaw. Ward Ipiihkoohkanipiaohtsi Coun. Jennifer Rice did not register a vote. 

Hamilton said when council approved the concept in 2020, they discussed eventually extending the line to the Edmonton International Airport.

"If you're talking about that direct connection and the timeliness of the actual transportation method from the airport through this corridor, I'm not sure that it's super efficient," she said.

Hamilton suggested the city could think about other ways to use the more than $500 million.

Construction of the Capital Line south extension is anticipated to take four to five years to complete, followed by testing and commissioning. 

Construction along 111 Street is expected to begin in 2025.

Phase 2 is designed to extend from Ellerslie Road to the Allard and Desrochers areas.

In a news release, the city extolled the potential benefits of the project on the local, regional and national economy.

An economic assessment predicts the project will create 9,500 full-time jobs and generate $1 billion in wages and salaries through construction, operations and maintenance, the release says.