Article content continued

The project is still in its initial stages with the fares, schedule and route to be determined, according to Iannacito. Most of the trips will originate from the Crowfoot LRT station in northwest Calgary and end in Banff with stops in Cochrane and Canmore.

The buses would be stored in Okotoks, so the CRP is exploring having the first pick-up and last drop-off of the day take place in that community so residents of surrounding municipalities can park their cars and take the bus all the way from Okotoks to Banff.

Obtaining seats on the buses would likely be determined by a first-come, first-served basis.

Photo by Ted Rhodes Ted Rhodes / Calgary Herald

The one-season trial program would run 10-12 weeks beginning in mid-June through Labour Day using up to five of the CRP’s On-It Regional Transit 55-seat coach buses.

Iannacito says the goal of the project is to take as many cars off the road as possible and establish a regional transit corridor.

“We’ve got the buses on the weekends and they’re sitting idle, we’ve got the contracts [with a private sector service provider], and we just thought that this would be a great idea, a great way to utilize those buses, provide a great service for our regional residents, and would be a great way to establish a truly regional transit corridor between Calgary and Banff, and see where it goes in the future,” said Iannacito.

Passengers from Banff or Canmore would also be able to ride the bus into Calgary for the day should they wish.

Discussions for implementing public transit between Calgary and the Bow Valley have been ongoing for several years at the CRP, an organization of 14 municipalities within the Calgary area. Both Canmore and Banff withdrew from the CRP in November.