This afternoon, Leduc County council voted to continue participation in the Regional Transit Services Commission (RTSC) while further work is done to identify the potential risks and impacts to the municipality.
The goal of the RTSC is to create a unified transit service for the Edmonton Metropolitan Region that delivers efficient and affordable transit options to all residents and improves the movement of people across the entire region.
The decision to continue exploring the RTSC demonstrates our commitment to enhancing the quality and frequency of transit options, not only for county residents, but for those who live and work in neighbouring communities.
There are still some questions that need to be answered before we can determine if the RTSC would be the best option for Leduc County, but we look forward to continuing the conversation with our neighbouring municipalities.
Mayor Tanni Doblanko
The decision comes after the release of the RTSC transition team’s final report, Accelerating Transit in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which examined the overall feasibility of an integrated-service approach.
According to the report, two regional express routes will directly service Leduc County; RE3, which will service Nisku Business Park and Edmonton International Airport (EIA) via Highway 2, and RE4, which will service the City of Beaumont, Nisku Business Park, EIA and the Town of Devon.
Questions surrounding the details of the commission’s governance, municipal autonomy, financial impacts and duplication of services are expected to be addressed in the next phase of the project.
Next steps in the process will be confirmed by the participating members of the RTSC once the voting process for all regional municipalities is complete.
It is anticipated that once voting is complete, an application would be submitted to the Government of Alberta to create the Commission, with operations commencing in 2022 at the earliest.
The 13 municipalities considering the RTSC are the City of Beaumont, the Town of Devon, the City of Edmonton, the City of Fort Saskatchewan, the City of Leduc, Leduc County, the Town of Morinville, Parkland County, the City of Spruce Grove, the City of St. Albert, the Town of Stony Plain, Strathcona County and Sturgeon County.
Background
In September 2017, City of Edmonton and City of St. Albert councils signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to begin the development of a Regional Transit Services Commission. Leduc County and ten other Edmonton Metropolitan Region communities joined the study in October 2018.