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Regional Transit Services Commission

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On January 22, 2020 the Regional Transit Commission Transition Task Force released its report Accelerating Transit in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region: Building a Regional Transit Services Commission (24.5MB). This business case was considered by municipal councils around the region and voting on participation in the new Commission took place in February and March 2020. 

On June 1, 2020 the Regional Transit Services Commission Transition Team released the Accelerating Transit in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region: Building a Regional Transit Services Commission Addendum. 

On June 11, 2020, nine municipalities in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region submitted a joint application to the Province of Alberta formally seeking the establishment of a Regional Transit Services Commission (RTSC).

The following municipalities are part of the provincial application: 

  • City of Beaumont
  • Town of Devon
  • City of Edmonton
  • City of Fort Saskatchewan
  • City of Leduc
  • Town of Morinville 
  • City of St. Albert
  • City of Spruce Grove
  • Town of Stony Plain

The addendum outlines updated routes and figures included in the Regional Transit Services Commission (RTSC) business case. These revisions reflect the removal of services previously incorporated to serve Strathcona County, Leduc County and Sturgeon County. Like the original report, the addendum demonstrates the viability of a Commission in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region based on which municipalities have chosen to participate.  

Next Steps

While the Province considers the application, an interim Board of elected representatives from the nine municipalities will meet to begin preparing for the implementation of the RTSC. This work will include an executive search for a CEO and planning a smooth transition to the Commission.

Why consider creating a Regional Transit Commission?

Public transportation is a critical service that warrants regional consideration. As cities and communities continue to attract more people, demand for appealing and viable public transit alternatives for commuters continues to grow. 

Municipal transit system providers face changing mobility preferences and shifts to regional economies that can make planning and forecasting transit services at the local level challenging.

In addition, the following considerations are worth examining at a regional level:  

  • The number of daily transit trips in the region has increased by nearly 9,000 since 2005, while the number of automobile trips has increased by about 236,000. That is one transit trip for every 26 automobile trips. 
  • Population impacts on our infrastructure and services may become more pronounced. For example, the regional forecast for 2020 population is 1.5 million and by 2065, this is expected to reach 3 million people, with 2 million people in the city of Edmonton and 1 million people in the region.

 

Background

In September 2017, the City of Edmonton and City of St. Albert Councils signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to begin taking steps to develop a Regional Transit Services Commission. The other 11 Edmonton Metropolitan Region communities joined in October 2018.

To begin this work, the Government of Alberta awarded the City of Edmonton and City of St. Albert a $3.7 million Community Partnership Grant, as the initial signatories, to work with the region to analyze the feasibility of a potential Transit Commission.

The following 13 municipalities that signed the MOU are represented on the Regional Transit Services Commission Transition Team: Beaumont, Devon, Edmonton, Fort Saskatchewan, Leduc, Leduc County, Morinville, Parkland County, St. Albert, Spruce Grove, Strathcona County, Stony Plain, and Sturgeon County.

For More Information

Contact ETS

Telephone

311
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/takeETS
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/EdmontonTransit/
Twitter https://twitter.com/takeetsalert

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