Communities First candidates are proposing a turnstile pilot project at three Calgary LRT stations, but one of the supporting candidate’s opponents said it’s a waste of taxpayers’ cash.
In a Sunday afternoon news release, Communities First said it would explore the idea of turnstiles at select LRT stations in Calgary, beginning with a pilot at the Chinook, Westbrook and Sunalta LRT stations.
It’s a plan that both mayoral candidate Sonya Sharp and Ward 13 candidate Dan McLean have pitched in the past. Later in 2023, it was confirmed that an entirely closed Calgary transit system could cost $284 million. City of Calgary admin called the plan infeasible.
Dan McLean, who is running for re-election in Ward 13, said he’s spent a lot of time pushing for safety measures on transit, saying that so many of his constituents are directly impacted by unsafe CTrain stations.
“We need to do everything possible to protect students, seniors, and families who rely on transit every day,” he said via news release.
“Exploring the use of turnstiles is a step in the right direction, and I am pleased to stand with Sonya Sharp and Communities First in making this a priority.”
Public safety has been a top issue during Calgary’s municipal election, even as Calgarians report much more favourable perceptions of public safety on transit.
In a 2024 public safety survey about Calgary Transit, 69 per cent of people felt safe riding the CTrain or waiting at a station during the day, while approximately one-third felt safe riding at night or waiting at a CTrain station.
Earlier this year, Calgary Transit announced its mobile ticket validators at all stations in an effort to help curb potential fare evasion.
Cost versus benefit on fare gates
A September 2024 report compiled by the City of Edmonton looked into whether fare gates were a legitimate tool for improving safety.
“Despite a current lack of evidence linking fare gates to decreases in safety and security incidents, some evidence suggests that fare gates improve riders’ perceptions of safety and fairness,” read the report.
“These perceptions are important because they influence future transit use and can lead to increased ridership.”
The report does note that fare gates do assist in improving fare evasion, but come with not only the upfront capital cost, but an ongoing cost, as stations typically need someone to assist those with mobility issues in accessing the transit system.
It also mentioned the Canadian Urban Transit Association’s safety taskforce report.
“The Canadian Urban Transit Association’s Transit Safety Taskforce was assembled to develop national recommendations for improving transit safety and security, reducing disorder and crime so transit is a safe transportation mode for all Canadians,” Edmonton’s report read.
“The final report included recommendations focused on rider safety, staff safety, housing and supports, substance use and mental health; fare gates were not included in the recommendations.”
McLean’s Ward 13 opponent Elliott Weinstein said that fare gates aren’t worth the taxpayer money it would cost to install them. Particularly because the payback would be minimal. Calgary’s fare evasion rate fluctuates between two to three per cent annually, generating little compared with the upfront cost.
“Every kind of report and study, and even from police in other jurisdictions, have said that people who want to jump over the turnstiles will, and it’s not really an effective use of stopping crime, or people sleeping on the transit, or people just not paying,” Weinstein said.
“So, it becomes an issue of effectiveness versus cost.”
Weinstein said that ultimately, dealing with the social issues and helping people find a place to live.
“The way to create a safer environment on transit, is to improve transit, to certainly improve enforcement, but really it’s creating a better situation for people who currently are using transit as a shelter,” he said.
“We need to provide basic necessities for people who need help, and that moves them from using transit as a shelter to housing system where they can receive mental health and addiction support that they need anyways, and then it creates a safer transit system.”
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