Mount Royal students fight to save S.W. transit project
As council meets Monday to discuss the fate of the controversial southwest bus rapid transit route, student leaders at Mount Royal University have penned an open letter to council in an attempt to halt its possible derailment.
The correspondence comes after councillors Jeromy Farkas and Diane Colley-Urquhart brought forward a notice of motion last week to halt the construction of Phase 2 of the Southwest BRT along 14th Street S.W.
“A 2006 Calgary Transit study showed that over 47 (per cent) of transit users who access Mount Royal University’s campus utilize the 14th Street corridor. Given the physical growth of our campus infrastructure, as well as steady growth in our enrolment rates, the need for the SW BRT becomes more urgent than ever,” reads a joint letter from Student’s Association of Mount Royal University president Shifrah Gadamsetti and vice-president external Aria Burrell, sent to councillors on Friday.
Farkas, who last month was elected councillor for Ward 11, which encompasses much of the project, said he would like to see more up-to-date data before moving ahead with the current plan.
Referring to the 2006 survey, Farkas says it “speaks to the point the Southwest BRT was designed without a lot of things in mind around how Mount Royal University has grown, how the ring road is changing southwest Calgary, the Tsuut’ina Nation’s development and so on.
“I think this approach will ensure that we gather real data before making such a costly decision,” Farkas said.
The letter from Mount Royal’s student council said they had hoped there would be no further delays after waiting for almost a decade for progress on the route.
“Students would be incredibly disappointed to see any further delay or reconsideration,” they wrote. “The potential of having so many years worth of work, human and financial resources, and consultation invalidated could see significant financial and social impact for all Calgarians.”
The letter adds the BRT benefits students and citizens who face financial and physical barriers, with parking availability and costs as significant challenges.
“With reduced availability and rising costs, many students, staff and faculty are seeking opportunities to utilize more efficient and affordable methods of transportation, and the SW BRT would provide us with the most effective solution to date.”
To mitigate not having the BRT, Farkas says he and Colley-Urquhart are proposing an “immediate pilot project.”
“This will enable more direct transit access from southwest Calgary to Mount Royal University today, rather than asking students who need that to wait two or three years during the construction, so we can get this done with low cost to taxpayers by using existing bus stops and infrastructure on the roads,” Farkas said.
Phase 2 of the transit route, which Farkas and Colley-Urquhart would like to see paused, extends from south of Glenmore Trail to Woodbine, along with dedicated bus lanes at the Rockyview Hospital, an underground bus tunnel at 90th Avenue and 14th Street S.W., two pedestrian bridges and a transit terminus in Woodbine.
“We want to make sure that before we spend the $100 million, that this investment actually makes sense with today’s data,” Farkas said.