Mayor asks province to preserve existing work on Green Line LRT in new alignment

Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondekposteda letter to social mediathat she sent to Premier Danielle Smith and Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshenasking the province to preserve at least some elements of the work that's already been done on the Green Line LRT.

In a Thursday evening post on X, formerly Twitter,Gondek said if the province were to use someof the city's existing work in its new alignment, it would save time and taxpayer money.

"For example, retaining the existing contract for low-floor vehicles allows design work to continue, prevents a new procurement processand expedites construction," Gondek said in her letter."Further, maintaining the existing contract for the design work on the segment that stretches from Fourth Street S.E. to Shepard would provide the same benefits."

The provincial government has hired infrastructure consulting firmAECOMto come up with a new alignment for the Green Lineby December. The province wants to forgo plans to tunnel throughdowntown Calgary in favour of laying tracks above ground to extend the line further into the city's southeast quadrant.

Plans for the Green Line were most recently upended whenDreeshen pulled the province's share of fundingon Sept. 3. Since then, city council voted to halt the transit expansion project with costs totalling $2.1 billion, including$850 million to wind it down.

The project has a tumultuous history dating back more than a decade. The city and province have been engaged ina war of words over who is to blame for it going off the rails.

"Ultimately, it is in our collective best interest to save money for taxpayers in our city and province," the mayor said."As time is of the essence as wind down progresses, it is critical that we quickly book a meeting with both of your offices and administration to discuss this further," Gondek told Smith and Dreeshen in her letter.

Coun. Terry Wong told CBC News he was glad to see Gondek's letter include an attempt to preserve Green Line work, and it aligns with the sentiment of what he said previously in council that there is an opportunity to salvage portions of the city's work.

"As much asthe province pulled funding, it did not mean that the Green Line was dead, but there was opportunity to re-engagewith the province and all the stakeholders," Wong said.

The Ward 7 rep added that if the province takes a differentapproach to the Green Line, and it's ultimately a different alignment, he'll take the opportunity to continue working with the provincial and federal governments on Calgary'sLRT.

Sonya Sharp, councillor for Ward 1, told CBC News that Gondek's letter carriesa noticeable shift in tone in communications between the mayor and the province.

Gondek previously blasted Dreeshenfor pulling funding, accusing the province ofonly being"interested in power and political stunting."

In Thursday's letter, the mayorappears to indicate a willingness to workwith the province to salvage as much as possible. In the letter, she asksfor a meeting with the premier and the transportation minister to discuss the specifics of such an agreement.

Sharp said the mayor's attitudehas changed drastically.

"You stood up there, you grandstandedagainst myself and other members of council words like 'Why would I ever go back to ask [the province]for anything?The project's dead,' to this letter,"Sharp said.

She characterized the city's move to scuttle the project after the funding withdrawal as a "knee-jerk" reaction.

"All of this could have been avoided if we had just maybe takena breath after that letter was sent," Sharp said, adding it appears to her the mayor is trying to save face by asking the province to preserve elements of the city's alignment to save taxpayer money.

"Why didn't you think of that before you decided to wind down with an estimated $850 millioncost? Why didn't we pause at maybe a burn rate of $20 million a month, which would have been [less than] $100 million in three months?" she said.

That being said, Sharp agrees it is in the best interest of all parties to hold on tothe effort that has already gone into the project.

"You don't want to lose expertise, you don't want to lose some of the work that's been done. But that wasn't the approach they took on Tuesday," she said.

According to Sharp,clarity has been lost as to whether the Green Line is dead or on pause because of mixed messaging from the mayor. She said she's waiting for the province to come back with a new alignment to determinenext steps.