Premier Smith pushes her own idea for Calgary's Green Line on radio show

Premier Danielle Smith is doubling down on the province's decision to withhold its funding for Calgary’s Green Line LRT.

During her radio show Your Province, Your Premier on Saturday, Smith said her government has already started the process of taking over control of the project from the city.

Coming just a day after Calgary’s mayor called the province’s plan unfeasible, Smith said city hall’s now-dead plan was “a little stub of a line.”

The Green Line is currently under an independent review, with a new plan set to arrive in December.

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The province commissioned the review after pulling its funding due to concerns with city hall increasing the budget for the line but shortening it by five stations.

In her show, Smith said the same company that previously assessed a Blue Line airport extension has already given a new assessment on this line.

Smith also provided an update on a rail project that her government has discussed for years.

"My thinking is this: Airdrie to Okotoks has a line that is currently fed by heavy rail, the kind that CP uses. We’ve begun conversations with CP about whether we might be able to build a companion line on their right of way that would be dedicated to passenger service," she said.

CTV News reached out to the premier’s office to get more information but the request was not returned.

Calgary city council will vote on Tuesday to officially transfer the Green Line project to the province.

Rally planned

As the province continues to push its vision of the new LRT line, a local group is raising concerns.

Calgary Alliance for the Common Good, an organization made up of various groups, such as unions, climate groups, and churches, says the project must serve the people who use transit.

It says Calgarians must be prioritized over politics and a solution must be found based on the available evidence.

Along with a letter-writing campaign, the group is holding a rally at city hall at noon on Monday.