|
Business officials laud rail
proposals
reprinted from Red Deer Advocate April 19, 2011
Business leaders in Red Deer
see proposals for new rail passenger stations in Edmonton and
Calgary as a good sign that the province is getting ready to move
forward with a high-speed rail project.
Bruce Schollie, president of the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce, said
on Monday that Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach's recent announcement of
a possible rail station in Edmonton offers local proponents some
hope that the province is moving ahead on high-speed rail.
The City of Calgary has already purchased land for a rail station,
so the Edmonton proposal increases the project's momentum, said
Schollie.
While there has been some discussion about where a station would be
located for Red Deer, including potential to place it at the
airport, it's difficult to plan anything without knowing the route
the tracks will take, he said.
Schollie also supports others, including Al Kemmere, former reeve of
Mountain View County, who have expressed concern that the rail
corridor would restrict east-west access for farmers and emergency
vehicles.
The province needs to start making land agreements now and planners
en route need to know what the route will be so they can be
adequately prepared once the project is ready to go, said Schollie.
Chamber pressing
high-speed rail plan
reprinted from Red Deer Advocate (Harley Richards) January 21, 2011
The Red Deer Chamber of
Commerce is hoping to fast-track high-speed rail.
Urging the Alberta government to move forward with the
long-contemplated project is one of six policy resolutions approved
by the Chamber board on Wednesday -- setting the stage for the
Alberta Chamber of Commerce to potentially adopt that position this
spring.
"We don't know where it's at and what's being done, so we'd like to
give a little nudge," said Chamber president Bruce Schollie,
stressing the importance of the issue to Red Deer.
"It's crucial to us. We want to make sure that our voice is heard
when it comes to high-speed rail, because we don't want to be
forgotten."
The Chamber resolution asks the provincial government to quickly
implement the recommendations in a recent study prepared for the
Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties.
That study highlighted the importance of identifying a right-of-way
for a high-speed rail system between Edmonton and Calgary, so that
affected municipalities can plan for it.
|
