The number of emergency calls regarding overdose incidents at public transit locations in Edmonton more than doubled in 2025 from the year before and was 2 1/2 times the number of calls in Calgary the same year, according to data from Alberta Health Services.
The figures, included in an access to information request, span 2018 to 2025 and apply to all overdose incidents for all substances. They show there were 368 such calls in Edmonton last year compared to 146 in Calgary.
In 2024, Edmonton had 154 such calls, a sharp decrease after annual totals exceeded 200 from 2021 through 2023. There were just 37 calls in Edmonton during 2020 and fewer than 10 in both 2018 and 2019.
The number of calls in Calgary steadily grew from 78 in 2018 to 220 three years later. The count fell below 200 in 2022, rose to 315 in 2023, then dropped sharply to 94 in 2024.
The count across both cities consistently grew from fewer than 100 in both 2018 and 2019, including less than 10 in Edmonton, and peaked at 550 across both cities in 2023. After a sudden dip to 248 in 2024, the volume more than doubled to 514 last year.
The most common months for such calls over all years were March, December, and February with each month accounting for more than 10 per cent of the total volume across both cities.
Postmedia’s analysis found that Dec. 22 and Christmas Day were the two most common dates for calls over all years and both cities.
Edmonton calls most frequent to Churchill station
In Edmonton, those calls were most frequent to Churchill station, with 211 since 2018, including 57 in 2022, the most of any station in the city over the past eight years. The station again led all others in the city last year with 48 calls.
Central and Coliseum stations were the only other stations with more than 100 calls since 2018, with 192 and 167 respectively last year.
Belvedere and Kingsway stations were the only two others to receive more than 20 calls in 2025.
‘Track these important outcomes for Albertans’
Emergency health services told Postmedia in a statement that its staff are trained and equipped to respond to medical emergencies in all locations.
“While every emergency scene is unique, EHS-Alberta’s approach to receiving, triaging and dispatching these calls has remained consistent over the years.”
The press secretary for Mental Health and Addiction Minister Rick Wilson stated in an email that opioid-related deaths in the province have significantly decreased since peaking in 2023, but acknowledged that the provincial capital has been an outlier.
“While most communities have returned to pre-pandemic levels, Edmonton continues to see exceptionally high rates of opioid-related deaths, particularly involving carfentanil, which is about 100 times more potent than fentanyl,” it reads.
“Alberta’s system of care has expanded significantly, including same-day addiction medicine treatment, medically supported detox, recovery communities and community-based supports, as part of our government’s focus on helping people recover and rebuild their lives.”
The government’s substance use surveillance system dashboard indicates provincial drug poisoning deaths fell each of the past two years, down to 1,423 in 2025, after peaking at 2,141 in 2023. The same data shows there have been 292 such deaths in the first three months of this year.
The union that represents paramedics, the Health Sciences Association of Alberta (HSAA), told Postmedia that calls for opioid poisonings and substance use emergencies are often complex, unpredictable, and place significant demand on emergency responders.
“If there is an increase in overdose and substance use related emergencies at transit stations, it would be consistent with what frontline health care workers expected,” reads a HSAA statement.
“We hope that these changes are being carefully monitored and evaluated so that we can track these important outcomes for Albertans.”
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