This document summarizes regional transportation planning in Alberta, Canada. It discusses the experiences of Edmonton and Calgary, as well as Fort McMurray, which relies on resource extraction. Key points covered include defining regions of influence, planning horizons and mandates at different government levels, identifying transportation corridors early, and considering different modes and service levels. Partnering between different levels of government and industry is highlighted as important for the unique needs of Fort McMurray.

1. REGIONAL
TRANSPORTATION PLANNING
Henry Devos
Expert Advisor,
Senior Planning Specialist
CIMA+
Follow: @YXERegion #yxesummit

2. Regional Transportation Planning
OVERVIEW
• Saskatchewan & Saskatoon
– Expanding resource-based economy;
– Leading growth in population/employment levels;
– Expanding urban development; and
– Increasing traffic volumes.
• Similarities with Alberta’s experience

3. Regional Transportation Planning
OVERVIEW
• Reference largely to the Alberta Experience
– Successes,
– Challenges,
– Outstanding Issues?
• Consider Three Urban Regions
– Edmonton
Industrial/manufacturing
– Calgary
Business/financial
– Fort McMurray Resource/economic driver

4. Regional Transportation Planning
DEFINE THE REGION
Zones of Influence around a Major Urban Centre

5. Regional Transportation Planning
PLANNING MANDATES
• Provincial Level:
– Inter-provincial, inter-regional, inter-city travel;
• Regional Level:
– Inter-municipal travel, between adjoining
municipalities in a single region;
– Multi-jurisdictional, requires oversight/coordinating
body.
• Municipal Level:
– Local travel, internal to jurisdiction.

6. Regional Transportation Planning
PLANNING HORIZONS
• Ultimate Stage Plan
– Footprint accommodates full build-out based on a long-term
regional Population Horizon;
– Issue: Many affected stakeholders are skeptical of planning
decades ahead.
• Interim or Stage 1 Plans
– Planning for a shorter time frame to a specific design year can
be made with greater confidence.
• Growth Management Plans
– Help establish consensus around the pace of the expanding
footprint to be served by the transportation network.

7. Regional Transportation Planning
CORRIDOR IDENTIFICATION
• Regional Transportation Infrastructure
– Generally requires corridors with little flexibility;
– Particularly as regional development progresses.
• Early, Long-Term, Planning
– Mitigates community and environmental
impacts, reduces disruption;
– Facilitates land use planning; E.g. Transit Oriented
Development (TOD) Nodes.
• Regional Transportation Plan is Shared Blueprint
– Simplifies the review and approval processes.

8. Regional Transportation Planning
TRANSPORTATION MODES
• At the Regional Level
– Roads (autos, trucks, goods movement),
– LRT/Transit,
– Rail (goods movement), and
– Air.
• Active Modes
– Although connectivity across the region is desirable,
Active Modes generally remain a local planning
activity.

9. Regional Transportation Planning
SERVICE LEVELS
• Define performance goals for the regional
transportation facilities;
• A hierarchy of road (and transit) systems
providing different Levels-of-Service, Design
Speeds and Access Management.
– Freeways, expressways, collectors and local roads;
– LRT, Bus Rapid Transit, Express Bus, local service.
• Facilities that increasingly accommodate local
travel (short trips), tend to be less efficient,
have shorter service lives

10. Regional Transportation Planning
TECHNOLOGY
• User Fees:
–
–
–
–
Mileage Based (Highway 407 passing Toronto)
Cordon Tolls (Vancouver Area Bridges)
Time of Day or Congestion Based
Impact on mode choice, route choice, time-of-day
• Emerging Vehicle & System Technologies
– Autonomous Vehicles – Removing driver behaviour
– Connected Vehicles – To smart corridors
– Electric Vehicles
• Impact on long-term transportation plans and services
will vary by location.

11. Regional Transportation Planning
THE CAPITAL REGION
• 120 km east-west, Wabamun to Lamont
• 100 km north-south, Redwater to Millet

12. Regional Transportation Planning
CAPITAL REGION
• Alberta’s Primary Industrial/Manufacturing Base
– Supports the energy sector and Fort McMurray’s oil-sands;
– Manufacturing/employment centres are spread
throughout the Capital Region.
• Employment Distribution
– Past 10 years, 7% growth downtown, 20% in suburbs;
– One new office tower downtown every decade.
• Capital Region Board (CRB) Established in 2008
– Mandated by Province to oversee regional growth
management, macro-level transportation planning;
– CRB represents 24 municipalities, comprising 5 cities, 5
counties, 11 towns, 3 villages, 1.2 M people

13. Regional Transportation Planning
EDMONTON
RING ROAD
PROVINCE’S
HIGHWAY 216
Anthony Henday
Drive
Constructed in a
“Transportation &
Utility Corridor”
(500m – 800m wide corridor)

14. Regional Transportation Planning
CAPITAL REGION NETWORK
• Convergence of 10 Provincial Highways
– Primary link is Highway 2 to Calgary;
– Primary East-West link is Yellowhead Highway 16;
– Provincial Ring Road, Anthony Henday Drive; and
– Edmonton’s Inner Ring Road.
• Edmonton’s LRT network will become regional
• Edmonton International Airport
– Proposed ‘Port Alberta’, similar to Regina’s Global
Transportation Hub.
• CN and CP Inter-Modal Yards

15. Regional Transportation Planning
CAPITAL REGION NETWORK - ROADS

16. Regional Transportation Planning
RING ROAD RATIONALE
Rationale for construction of Alberta’s two almost
complete Provincial Ring Roads:
1.
To restore inter-regional mobility passing the two
urban regions;
2.
To support travel into and out of the two major urban
regions as a destination for long-distance travel; and
3.
To assist the two urban regions in restoring efficient
transportation systems, i.e. to help them grow.

17. Regional Transportation Planning
ALBERTA RING ROADS
POPULATION HORIZONS
Year
1965
1975
1985
1995
2005
2015
0
10
20
30
40
50
Capital Region Population
375,000
530,000
685,000
775,000
Calgary Region Population
310,000
460,000
650,000
785,000 1,030,000 1,270,000
Years Elapsed
910,000 1,100,000
Ring Road Activity
Scoping
Planning
Property Acquisition
Design & Construction

Scoping began when populations levels passed 300,000.

Construction began when population levels reached 750,000.

Nearing completion when population levels passed 1,200,000.

18. Regional EDMONTON LRT
CITY OFTransportation Planning

19. Regional Transportation Planning
EDMONTON LRT
• Recent route planning studies selected corridors
through established Edmonton communities
– Seen as intrusive in the short-term, controversial;
– Transformational in the long-term; new ‘highest &
best land uses’ will evolve (TOD).
• Classic Hub and Spoke design
– Good service to/from downtown and university;
– Perhaps less effective for the regional employment
centres.
• Potential to ultimately extend LRT to several
outlying municipalities

20. Regional Transportation Planning
CAPITAL REGION PLAN - TRANSIT

21. Regional Transportation Planning
REGIONAL
MUNICIPALITY OF
WOOD BUFFALO
(Fort McMurray)
Approximately:
• 520 km north-south
• 240 km east-west

22. Regional Transportation Planning
FORT McMURRAY
• Achieved city status in 1980;
• Amalgamated with the surrounding
Improvement District in 1995
• Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo (RMWB)
is largest municipality in Alberta
• 7-8% annual growth for last 10+ years
– Has challenged the municipality’s ability to keep
pace with infrastructure, including transportation

23. Regional Transportation Planning
ATHABASCA
OIL SANDS
AREA &
PROJECTS
Approximately
300 km by 200 km

24. Regional Transportation Planning
FORT
McMURRAY
(URBAN
DEVELOPMENT
SUB-REGION)
Centered on the
confluence of
Athabasca and
Clearwater Rivers

25. Regional Transportation Planning
FORT McMURRAY – HIGHWAY 63
• Highway 63 is the municipality’s only North-South
corridor
• Passes through entire length of Fort McMurray
• Connects all neighbourhoods and resource
industries
• Queues and congestion have been legend at the
region’s only river crossing in downtown Fort
McMurray
• Province is upgrading the highway to urban
freeway standards

26. Regional Transportation Planning
FORT McMURRAY - INDUSTRY
• To reduce auto dependency/mitigate congestion,
Industry:
– Established bus services to the mine sites
– Continues to build camps/ lodges near the mine
sites, housing 1000’s of staff
– Established airfields near the plant sites, flying staff
in and out from around the country
• Fort McMurray airport is undergoing major
expansion
• Highly mobile labour force for the high-value
resource industries

27. Regional Transportation Planning
FORT McMURRAY - PARTNERING
• Province and RMWB are developing a corridor
management plan for Highway 63 through UDSR
• To Support the Expanding Bus Services:
– Province is passing legislation permitting designation of
special use lanes, Bus/HOV lanes, Bus-on-Shoulder
operations, etc.
• Province’s Transportation Coordinating Committee
includes RMWB and industry representatives
• Comprehensive Regional Infrastructure
Sustainability Plan (CRISP) jointly developed by
provincial agencies, industry and the RMWB

28. Regional Transportation Planning
CONCEPTUAL
Athabasca Oil
Sands Area
REGIONAL
NETWORK
Comprehensive
Regional
Infrastructure
Systems Plan (CRISP)
(Long-Term)

29. Regional Transportation Planning
CLOSING
The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson, from a
Globe & Mail article, September 26/13:
Commuting by car is not easy, and it takes so
much time. Why do we not have a public
transportation system, which goes ahead of
where we’re planning to have new communities?
THANK YOU