The public is encouraged to offer their input on how Deerfoot can be improved

Eight major interchanges are identified for upgrades, with the province earmarking over $200 million right now

Deerfoot Trail handles over 180,000 people every day, and commuters complain it is not very efficient

CALGARY (660 NEWS) — It’s Calgary’s longest thoroughfare, and handles close to 200,000 people every single day.

But most commuters will agree that Deerfoot Trail needs some major upgrades.

The province and the city are coming together to provide those upgrades, in the hopes of properly managing growth over the next 30 years, and have released some early concepts.

With about $200 million earmarked in this early stage, there are plans for upgrades on all of the major intersections along the 35 kilometre long route including new lanes, improved transit service and more.

“It’s not working well today, we all understand the heavy traffic and the frustration of Calgarians,” said Jeffrey Xu, the city’s project manager.

They have been engaging with the public for the last few years to identify the main concerns in the hopes of improving the commute.

There were also some concerns from commuters that were easily identified such as congestion, weaving, and safety.

In total, eight interchanges have been singled out for improvements, while the rest of the road will also likely see some improvements as well — including the introduction of HOV (high-occupancy vehicle) lanes to encourage more carpooling.

From now until November 25, Calgarians can offer their input on the ideas at the city’s website.

However this comes amid concerns around the future of the Green Line LRT. The province has said they are not prioritizing this project over anything else.

“I would not say that,” said Jerry Lau with Alberta Transportation. “In fact, part of the study looks at all different modes of transportation. So we don’t want to cannibalize one mode of transportation for another. We are trying to seek an equilibrium between all modes of transportation.”

Though when it comes to one city councillor, the future of the Green Line doesn’t matter much and he believes upgrades to Deerfoot will better improve commutes and transportation experiences for residents.

“You know what, I’ve always said I’ve always been against the Green Line, to be quite frank with you,” said Ward 2 Coun. Joe Magliocca, indicating it’s possible it will still be funded five or six years down the road.

“We’ve got to prioritize where the congestions are. And we can spot right now a few of them on the Deerfoot…and we can relieve it with about $50 to 60 million of work.”

To build a single interchange in Calgary would cost about $60 million alone, so the money that is included right now is barely a drop in the bucket of what would be required to totally upgrade Deerfoot Trail.

By comparison, in March, the past NDP government committed close to half a billion dollars to improve Deerfoot Trail. However that plan only covered some of the proposed concepts in the plan announced on Wednesday.

Magliocca added that former Premier Rachel Notley was “fake news”, and stated that the funding being promised by the United Conservative Party is more believable.