Alberta-to-Montana passenger train would benefit economy, tourism: report
The rail line from Lethbridge to Coutts is used solely for freight trains, but a new feasibility study done by Integrated Travel Research and Development looks at the potential of adding a passenger train.
"We looked at the social, environmental and economic benefits and we found that it would be very beneficial for Alberta and Montana to have this rail link, especially for rural residents," said Tyler Macklem, who led the Alberta-Montana Passenger Rail Feasibility Report project along with researcher Samantha Thyret.
The 888-kilometre route would run from Calgary to Livingston, Mont., with stations in places like Vulcan, Lethbridge, Stirling, Coutts, Great Falls and Helena.
"For Montana, Canada is actually the largest trading partner," said Trevor Lewington, CEO of Economic Development Lethbridge.
"Most of their export products come to our region and so this is the idea from a tourism perspective and just the movement of people, this has a lot of potential to explore."
According to the report, the Amtrak Empire Builder transports between 300,000-500,000 people from Seattle to Chicago through Montana each year.
"We know that the U.S. market is a huge opportunity for us," said Erin Crane, CEO of Tourism Lethbridge.
"The highway leading up to Alaska has always been a good travel route for us.
"During a tourism town hall last week, one of the things that actually came out of that when we were talking about the potential for tourism over the next 10 years in our region was a real focus on rail."
When looking at the tourism impacts, the report highlights national parks such as Waterton Lakes and Banff as main attractions to visiting southern Alberta, while Glacier and Yellowstone national parks act as go-to spots for tourists Stateside.
For smaller communities along the track, David Strohmaier with Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority in Montana says the route would positively benefit each economy.
"This is an option to connect folks to other communities, larger urban areas if you're living in a rural area to access services that you currently may not have that ability to do right now," Strohmaier said.
"We've long advocated either connectivity from Denver up to Montana or even Texas all the way north and it makes complete sense to connect our two countries and have cross-border travel."
The proposed route would share tracks owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) and BNSF, with improvement opportunities to be made to existing railroad infrastructure.
With the transportation sector making up roughly 22 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, the report found that by reducing the number of cars on the highway, the passenger train would be able to reduce travel emissions by 75 per cent.
"Alberta rapidly grows its population and there needs to be fast and efficient transportation networks that currently highways and more car expansion just doesn't fulfill," Macklem said.
Roughly 5,600 motorists drove on Highway 4 south of Lethbridge in 2022 and 19,202 drivers travelled between Manhattan and Belgrade, Mont., during the same time period.
With nearly 47,000 people crossing the border at Coutts in July 2023, Lewington says now is the perfect time t plan for the future.
"There are many, many Albertans that own vacation properties," Lewington said.
"We have many people in Lethbridge that own businesses in Montana. ... It gives us an opportunity to explore, 'Does this make sense? What could this look like?'
"And if nothing else, hopefully, it gets people talking about the idea."
While the feasibility study is only the start for the project, those involved are hoping to get more funding to explore it further and engage with communities along the route.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton hospitalized after prison attack
British Columbia serial killer Robert Pickton sustained life-threatening injuries in a Quebec prison Sunday in what officials described as a 'major assault.'
Passenger killed, 30 injured as Singapore Airlines flight hits severe turbulence
One passenger was killed and 30 injured after a Singapore Airlines SIAL.SI flight from London hit severe turbulence en route on Tuesday, forcing it to make an emergency landing in Bangkok, officials and the airline said.
WATCH Why today's inflation numbers are good if you have a mortgage
New inflation data is 'welcome news' for consumers and an economist says it could signal the possibility for a interest rate cut as several core measures also continue to ease.
Conservatives kick off return to House with new call for Speaker Greg Fergus to resign
Pierre Poilievre's Conservatives returned to the House of Commons on Tuesday with a renewed call for Speaker Greg Fergus to resign, this time over 'very partisan' and 'inflammatory' language used to promote an upcoming event.
opinion Tom Mulcair: With Trudeau spiralling, Mark Carney waits in the wings
In his latest column for CTVNews.ca, former NDP leader Tom Mulcair argues that if there's an unofficial frontrunner in the eventual race to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader, it has to be former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney.
Trump campaign calls 'The Apprentice' 'blatantly false,' director offers to screen it for him
Donald Trump's reelection campaign called 'The Apprentice,' a film about the former U.S. president in the 1980s, 'pure fiction' and vowed legal action following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. But director Ali Abbasi is offering to privately screen the film for Trump.
Feels like mid-30s in parts of Canada, while other areas expecting snow
Anything is possible this week, as far as Canada's weather is concerned, with forecasts ranging from scorching heat in some parts of the country to rain and snow in others.
Nestle to sell $5 pizza, sandwiches in the U.S. for Wegovy, Ozempic users
Nestle NESN.S will market a new, US$5 line of frozen pizzas and protein-enriched pastas in the United States which it says it designed specifically for people taking drugs such as Wegovy or Ozempic for weight loss.
How much more Canadian consumers are paying, compared to this time last year
Canada's annual inflation rate slowed to a three-year low of 2.7 per cent in April, matching expectations, and core measures continued to ease, data showed on Tuesday, likely boosting chances of a June interest rate cut.