The City of Calgary's executive committee has chosen a surface alignment down 10 Avenue S.W. as its preferred route for the controversial Green Line LRT through the downtown core, endorsing the option in a 12-1 vote that came after nearly two years of study and debate.
Decision driven by budget limits
Committee members were presented with three shortlisted options and ultimately selected the route that terminates at a station between 1 and 2 Street S.W.. The option was described by city officials as the only alignment that fits within the project’s existing funding envelope.
During the debate, Mayor Jeromy Farkas acknowledged reservations but urged the committee to advance the project.
“I will admit, this is the first time I will actually vote to support the Green Line. There will always be a reason we can come up with to delay, but there’s not going to be a time when it’s cheaper to build.”
Ward 2 Coun. Jennifer Wyness was the lone dissenting vote. Ward 4 Coun. DJ Kelly summed up the financial reality facing councillors, saying the elevated options required funds the city does not have.
“It’s obvious to me that Option 1 and Option 2 require money we simply do not have,”
The executive committee’s endorsement follows an extended period in which city staff studied a total of 22 downtown alignments between 2016 and 2024. The three presented to the committee were the result of that broader review and a council directive to examine alternate routes through the core.
How the three options compare
| Option | Alignment | Budget impact | Notable detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Option 1 | Elevated above 10 Ave S.W., turn north above 2 St S.W. | +$1 billion over available funding | Highest projected ridership: 51,000 daily trips; would reach 7 Ave to connect to Red and Blue lines |
| Option 2 | Elevated above 10 Ave S.W., turn north up 1 St S.E. | +$500 million over available funding | Also elevated; exceeds current budget |
| Option 3 (selected) | Surface down 10 Ave S.W., terminal between 1 and 2 St S.W. | Within current budget | Supported by executive committee 12-1 |
Local impacts and next steps
The committee's endorsement does not complete the project approval process. The chosen alignment will still move through further design and approvals, and project officials say the alignment selection followed their requirement to match route options with available funding.
For Calgarians, the committee’s decision tightens the timeline on what will likely be years of downtown construction if the project proceeds. A surface alignment will have different construction footprints, staging requirements and traffic management implications than elevated alternatives. It is also likely to shape connectivity with the existing Red and Blue line LRTs, since the elevated option projected the highest ridership but required substantially more funding to reach 7 Avenue and link with the downtown transit spine.
- Ridership: The highest ridership estimate was attributed to the elevated option at 51,000 daily trips.
- Funding: Two elevated options would have pushed costs $500 million to $1 billion beyond the money currently available.
- Political split: The decision was broadly supported on the executive committee but saw one dissenting vote.
City staff and project officials will now proceed to the next phases of planning for the surface alignment, including detailed design, stakeholder engagement and coordination around how the downtown segment will integrate with existing downtown functions and the broader LRT network.
Calgarians can expect further public updates as the Green Line project advances through the city’s approval and procurement process.
