Calgary's largest COVID-19 vaccine clinic now offers free transit, free parking

Alberta's largestvaccination site has made it a little easier for people to get immunized for coronavirus.

As of Saturday, Calgary Transit will offertwo free transit tickets for those who take the CTrain or bus to get to their appointment ath the Telus Convention Centre.

The centre is located near Centre Street CTrain Station. Parking is also free for the first 90 minutes for guests with booked appointments, but as space is limited, the centre is suggesting visitors consider other options for getting to the site.

To get the free tickets, visitors just need to show the validated ticket or bus transfer to show that they used Calgary Transit to get to the centre.

The site, which opened on April 5, has up to 120 vaccination stations meaningit can offer shots to 500 Albertans each day, and can expand that to 5,000 once supply allows.

Mayor Naheed Nenshi said last week in advance of the centre's opening that it's almost purpose-built for the occasion.

"It'll be comfortable and easy for people. All of the queuing is indoors out of the elements. We've got the CTrain right there. We've got parking available. We've got the bike racks there. So the idea is to make it easy and safe and pleasant for people as we process an enormous amount of people through this facility," he said.

A total of847,630 coronavirus vaccine doses had been administered in Alberta as of Sunday, and 163,352 people were fully immunized.

As of Sunday, appointments were available at the site.

People born in 1956 or earlier and people over age 16 with eligible health conditionscan book Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna shots, and those age 55 to 64 can book AstraZeneca. Starting Monday, eligible health-care workers will be able to book appointments as well.

Appointment bookingand a full list of those eligible to book can be found on the Alberta Health Services website. No drop-in appointments are available, and people will be screened for symptoms prior to entering for their appointments.