Calgary Transit Seeks Additional $14 Million for Enhanced Services

Calgary Transit has requested an additional $14 million in operating funds to enhance service levels and frequency, despite an increase in its overall budget for 2026. The agency’s director, Sharon Fleming, addressed city council members on Day 5 of budget discussions, highlighting ongoing funding pressures that the transit system faces.

Next year, Calgary Transit’s net operating budget will rise from $391 million to $417 million, while capital costs are set to increase from $217 million to $306 million. Despite this growth, Fleming emphasized that the agency requires an additional $14 million annually to support its RouteAhead strategy, which aims to achieve a service frequency of every ten minutes for 15 hours a day, seven days a week on its primary transit routes. The overall budget request for the agency totals an additional $26 million compared to the previous year.

“This budget is a good first step in achieving our 10-year plan to meet the fast and frequent service that Calgarians are asking for,” Fleming said during the session. She noted that the current funding allocation will not cover essential capital needs necessary to enhance service frequency for Calgary Transit’s “base” network, which includes local community bus routes that connect riders to the main transit system.

In her remarks, Fleming pointed out that the budget does not encompass the $45 million needed to procure enough buses to meet the service level targets outlined in the RouteAhead strategy. “We’re hopeful that future budgets do include bus acquisition,” she stated. “It’s a challenge for us to grow service without more vehicles.”

Earlier in the year, Fleming indicated to the council that the city would require an additional $15 million in operating costs and $45 million in capital expenditures annually over the next decade to successfully reach the goals set forth in the RouteAhead strategy. The agency also faces significant capital projects in the upcoming years, including the construction of a new $500 million bus maintenance and storage facility to replace the existing bus barn in Victoria Park, as well as the development of the Green Line LRT.

“Transit is currently facing a significant funding gap as we move to a city of two million, on both the operating and capital side of the ledger,” Fleming remarked, underlining the challenges that lie ahead for Calgary Transit as it seeks to expand and improve its services in response to growing demand.

As budget discussions continue, the outcome will be pivotal in determining the future of public transit in Calgary, particularly in light of the ambitious goals set by the RouteAhead strategy and the pressing need for updated infrastructure and vehicles to support a growing population.