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By Brenton Harding

For decades, Calgarians have discussed the CTrain and the city’s development of its light-rail transit system.

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Since CTrain development began in the 1980s, there is one question that has never really been asked: when will Calgary build a real commuter rail system?

What do we have now? For all intents and purposes, the CTrain is little more than the Toonerville Choo Choo, a bus system on rails that fails to meet the real needs of city commuters.

Built for the 1988 Olympic Winter Games, planners developed a light-rail transit system that might be likened to a child’s glove. For an eight-year-old, the glove fit perfectly. For a 28-year-old, it is impossible.

Since 1988, the city has continued to build on a poorly planned system. City planners should know the system is too small, all the signs are there.

A simple example is platform length. Planners realized a few years ago they had built platforms that were too short. They could only accommodate a three-car CTrain. Adding cars to existing trains could increase capacity, but for the short platforms.