Calgary Transit director Sharon Fleming said the free-to-ride zone has made it difficult for transit peace officers to enforce fare compliance and has contributed to heightening public concerns around social disorder along the network.<\/p>\n
\u201cUltimately, safety is the driving factor behind administration\u2019s recommendation to remove the free fare zone,\u201d she said, citing the results of citywide surveys and among transit users, particularly in the downtown.<\/p>\n
\u201cRidership gains from expanded transit service, fare pricing or messaging are limited unless safety issues downtown are addressed first,\u201d Fleming said.<\/p>\n
Removing the free fare zone is expected to increase Calgary Transit\u2019s revenue by $5 million a year, according to Fleming, who said administration recommends council reallocate any extra funding toward safety-related enhancements.<\/p>\n
Eleven members of the 15-person council \u2014 comprising the infrastructure and planning committee \u2014 voted on the issue Thursday. Committee members who voted against the recommendation to remove the zone included Ward 7 Coun. Myke Atkinson, Ward 8 Coun. Nathaniel Schmidt, Ward 5 Coun. Raj Dhaliwal and Ward 3 Coun. Andrew Yule.<\/p>\n
The free fare zone\u2019s removal must still be voted on by city council at its May 26 regular meeting. If at least eight members support the recommendation, transit fees would be in effect along the CTrain downtown in August.<\/p>\n
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Calgary Ward 7 Coun. Myke Atkinson speaks to media outside council chambers on Jan. 27, 2026. He said the downtown free fare zone should remain.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t believe there is any justification for eliminating the free fare zone,\u201d said Atkinson, the downtown-area councillor.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve been making massive investments to make sure the tax productivity of our downtown core rebounds from the bottoming out that we had a couple years ago. Something like this potentially means we have less people moving around, less people visiting businesses within the downtown.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ward 6 Coun. John Pantazopoulos sought to amend the motion by implementing an alternative rate structure for the LRT downtown that would see single-trip tickets priced at half the current rate, and for transfer times to be cut in half. He called it a middle ground.<\/p>\n
The amendment was rejected in a 1-9 vote.<\/p>\n
Yule also brought an amendment to defer the motion until next year\u2019s fare strategy review is completed, to allow for additional engagement with downtown stakeholders.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think with a decision (like this) after four decades, I\u2019d rather it not be a yes-no answer but an innovative answer that Calgarians can get on board,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet\u2019s find a better solution.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yule\u2019s amendment was also shot down, 4-7.<\/p>\n
Committee chair Andre Chabot reiterated Fleming\u2019s comments that removing the free fare zone will free up more revenue to bolster safety on the transit system.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow can we not want that?\u201d said Chabot, the Ward 10 councillor. \u201cThat\u2019s the No. 1 thing people said will get them back on transit.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, it\u2019s not about the revenue, it\u2019s about what it can potentially lead to.\u201d<\/p>\n
Before the vote, roughly a dozen members of the public addressed the committee, many representing downtown or business groups, with each urging councillors not to remove the free fare zone.<\/p>\n
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The downtown Calgary Hyatt Regency hotel. Downtown businesses and in turn the Calgary economy benefit from people having free use of the CTrain said<\/p>\n
Carson Akroyd, senior vice-president of sales for Tourism Calgary, said many of the city\u2019s convention and conference centres, as well as downtown-area hotels, are \u201cbuilt around\u201d the free fare zone as an incentive to attract visitors. Removing it would make downtown Calgary less attractive and less competitive for hosting conferences and events, he said.<\/p>\n
The free fare zone is not a transit subsidy, but rather one of Calgary\u2019s highest performing economic assets, Akroyd argued. He cited that in 2025, conventions and conferences in the downtown generated $240 million for the city.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to look at the free fare zone not as an expense, but as a strategic investment in Calgary\u2019s economic growth and competitiveness,\u201d Akroyd told the committee.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the end of the day, the decision before council is whether to trade roughly $5 million in revenue for a convention and visitor economy that generates hundreds of millions (of dollars) annually for Calgary businesses, workers and tax revenue.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another speaker was Andrew Doudican, urban strategy director for the Calgary Downtown Association. He called removing the free fare zone an \u201canti-downtown\u201d proposition, adding the zone is an economic tool and a \u201ccritical connector\u201d for moving people freely through Calgary\u2019s core.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe free fare zone has enabled that for more than 40 years,\u201d he told the committee. \u201cIt makes the downtown feel connected, accessible and efficient. That matters. Downtown is Calgary\u2019s economic engine \u2014 much of Calgary\u2019s tax revenue is generated here \u2014 and when you reduce the ease of movement, you reduce economic activity. And that has real, fiscal consequences.\u201d<\/p>\n