Banff sees drop in traffic as transit ridership increases

The Town of Banff's push for more sustainable transportation this summer has paid off.

A report presented to the town's council showed that the number of vehicles entering Banff decreased slightly, by 2.5 per cent, in July and August. Meanwhile, transit ridership and bike rack use both saw huge increases up 44 and 42 per cent, respectively, over the same period.

"It's really encouraging. The stereotypical Albertan who doesn't want toget out of his truck is simply not what we see here," saidAdrian Field, director of engineering for the town, adding that the number of people that walk and cycle in the park was already high.

"More people are choosing to take transit than are choosing to stay in their vehicles."

There was also a 3.5 per cent decrease in traffic over the Banff Avenue Bridge, which the report suggested meant people were parking in town and either walking, biking or taking the bus.

One factor in the decrease might have been the impact of poor weather and forest fire smoke on tourism.

The town had also added additional transit routes this summer after a busy year for park visitors in 2017, and improved bike lanes.

The park recorded 4.2 millionvisitors in the 2017-18 fiscalyear, with more than27,500 vehicles in the park per day during July and August last year.

"The real finding from this summer is that those initiatives are really working," Field said.

"We're seeing this year in particular a dramatic shift toward sustainable ways to move around a beautiful town in a national park."

More than 422,000 people rode transit in and around Banff in July and August, including Banff's regional Roam service, the On-It shuttle that connects Calgary with Banff and Canmore, and the Gondola shuttle which is up 27 per cent from the previous year.

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With files from Lucie Edwardson