🤡UCP's Green Line to nowhere is the shortest and costliest Green Line ever

The Provincial Government-controlled Green Line will now run between just the Shepard industrial area and the taxpayer-subsidized new Flames arena (outside of downtown) for a whopping cost of $6.25-billion. With the latest political interference by Danielle Smith and Devin Dreeshen, instead of shovels going in the ground downtown last Fall as the City was on track to do, the project will spend years more "studying" an elevated downtown alignment already rejected by everyone - in spite of 60% design plans already completed for the underground alignment. Scandalously, the UCP's political interference has cost Calgarians billions of public dollars and continues to delay efficient public transit in Calgary indefinitely. 

Green Line groundbreaking in an empty field in the middle of nowhere. (Image source: The Sprawl)

Construction on the Green Line started back in April 2022 with utility relocations downtown, but a groundbreaking with all three levels of government did not occur until this past June after years of costly delay and political interference by the Provincial UCP Government. The location of the groundbreaking in an empty suburban industrial field underscored how the actions of the UCP have ultimately created what they for years criticized the City of Calgary for proposing to build: a train to nowhere.

🤠 UCP's proposed elevated downtown alignment rejected by Calgarians

Back in January, Calgary's Downtown business, real estate and construction industry associations issued a decisive joint statement to the Alberta Government calling Transportation Minister Dreeshen's proposed elevated Green Line plan through the Beltline and downtown 'reckless'. The letter dated January 24th, 2025 was sent to the Alberta Government from NAIOP Calgary, BOMA Calgary, Calgary Construction Association and the Calgary Downtown Association. It echoed the concerns raised by residents and local businesses.

Nobody supports the UCP's elevated downtown Green Line alignment.

🖍️Dreeshen failed to find a better or cheaper Green Line alignment, preferred option redacted

The Provincial Government's AECOM report exposes the inconvenient truth that Transportation Minister Dreeshen's proposed crayon map elevated alignment is likely not even the preferred alignment by AECOM and underestimates $1.3-billion in extra costs and risks. Dreeshen fully redacted the section of the report titled "Preferred Downtown Option" from the public release, and like his predecessor McIver's publicly withheld 2021 technical assessment that ultimately concurred with the City's underground Green Line alignment, it remains a UCP secret to this day.

⬇️ Going underground in the Beltline and Downtown is still the best option

The plans put forward by the City of Calgary are the only viable options for the Green Line.

🤑Billionaires first: redistributing public money for private billionaires

The Alberta Government of Premier Danielle Smith, left, is backing Australian coal billionaire Gina Rinehart's (right) quest to build underground coal mines in the ecologically sensitive eastern slopes of the Rockies. (Image source: The Tyee)

Danielle Smith and her UCP Government are contributing $55-million in taxpayer funds to build an underground arena for one of the richest billionaires in Canada (who lives in Switzerland). They are also rolling out the red carpet for the richest person in Australia to help her dig a new coal mine on the eastern slopes of the Rockies. Meanwhile, the UCP refuse to contribute to build efficient underground public transit for taxpayers in Calgary.

🔎Questions about Premier's husband's potential lobbying for billionaire's for-profit tourist train

Calgary oil tycoon Adam Waterous behind the proposed private, for-profit Banff to Calgary Airport railway project. (Image source: The Sprawl).

As reported in The Sprawl's latest feature on the Green Line, questions were raised in the Legislature by MLA Peter Guthrie as to the nature of Danielle Smith's husband's involvement in lobbying the Provincial Government on the issue of a billionaire's proposed P3, for-profit tourist train from the Calgary Airport to Banff that is potentially at odds with the future prioritization of the Green Line north leg and route through downtown.

🖍️"Billionaires First" municipal political party candidates capitulate to UCP political interference

It didn't have to be this way, but back in January, Councillor Sonya Sharp and her UCP-aligned "Billionaires First" municipal political party led a bloc of city councillors in a capitulation to the Provincial Government's 'reckless' elevated Green Line alignment through the Beltline and downtown. The spineless decision committed Calgary taxpayers to carry 100% of the liability and cost overruns of the Province's riskier, more expensive proposed elevated alignment that at only 5% design maturity has already been determined to be at least $1.3-billion more costly by City Administration.

The above "Billionaires First" municipal political party candidates voted to capitulate to the Provincial Government on recommendation 2(b) to begin planning on the Province's "Dreeshen Drawing" for elevated alignment through the Beltline and Downtown.