As the Green Line is set for debate this week, a new poll from a Calgary group shows two-thirds of those polled support the $5.5 billion project.
The poll, conducted by Project Calgary, a group in favour of the current Stage 1 alignment, shows that 67.8 per cent of Calgarians surveyed support building the Green Line based on the estimated 20,000 jobs it will create.
The survey also showed that 70.5 per cent of respondents support the Green Line on the basis that there’s a combined $3 billion in federal and provincial cash.
Further, 63.5 per cent of survey respondents support building the Green Line from the North Central end point (16 Avenue N Station) to the Shepard station in the southeast. That’s the city’s current updated Stage 1 alignment.
Calgary city councillors will debate the final alignment of the Green Line, which was approved at the Green Line committee June 1. The conversation has divided many in the city and on city council.
“The poll demonstrates that a strong majority of Calgarians want the Green Line built now, from north to south,” said Peter Oliver, organizer with Project Calgary.
“Calgarians overwhelmingly reject half-baked ideas to cut the north portion of the Green Line and only build south.”
Oliver said it’s critical to get the line to 16 Avenue N in order to reduce the future cost of expansion to north Calgary communities.
“Calgarians don’t want Council to delay much-needed jobs and investment in our economy. Now is the time to build the Green Line.”
Similar overall result in prior Green Line poll… but different
Project Calgary and the GreenLineinfo.ca group have been at odds over the two Green Line proposals. The latter group also commissioned a poll done in late May.
The two-thirds support was echoed the Green Line support of a poll done by the group opposed to the Green Line’s current configuration.
In that poll, which had 603 respondents, it showed 69 per cent support for the Green Line project – including 34 per cent strongly supporting it.
When they aided respondents with further information on the Green Line particulars, geared towards the overwhelming cost to taxpayers, the number supporting the project drops by 18 per cent.
They also aided respondents in the poll for reasons why the Green Line should be changed and why it should go ahead.
The Green Line alternative group also provided aids for poll respondents on their plan and then asked them if they supported the alternative plan. When aided, a majority of respondents also supported their Green Line plan.
The Project Calgary survey was done using IVR technology from Converso, was sent to 25,053 Calgarians and completed by 1,617 people. The poll was sent to a random mix of cellphone and landlines. It was done in the evening on June 11 and has a three percent margin of error, 19 times out of 20.
