WATCH: Dreeshen says Alberta government will build proper Calgary Green Line

Alberta Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen said there has been a ton of talk and misinformation about Calgary’s Green Line LRT. In response, Dreeshen said he wanted to set the record straight. “To understand the Green Line, we first need to take a look at the history of the project and how it started and how it is that we got here today,” said Dreeshen in a Monday video. .Dreeshen said on September 3 the Green Line “is fast becoming a multibillion dollar boondoggle that will serve very few Calgarians.” READ MORE: Dreeshen says Alberta government to halt funding to Calgary’s Green Line LRTIn response, he said the Alberta government is unable to support or provide funding for the revised Green Line Stage One scope as outlined in the City of Calgary’s most recent business case. “To be clear, we recognize your and the current council’s efforts to try to salvage the untenable position you’ve been placed in by the former mayor and his utter failure to completely oversee the planning, design, and implementation of a cost-effective transit plan that have could have served hundreds of thousands of Calgarians in the City’s southern and northern communities,” he said.Former Calgary mayor Naheed Nenshi introduced the Green Line in 2015. Nenshi promised it would be a 46 kilometre line running from 160 Ave. N to Seton and include 29 stations. The Green Line was supposed to include a tunnel running under the Bow River and through the downtown core. In 2015, it was supposed to cost $4.65 billion. Dreeshen said Calgary city council failed to do any proper costing, engineering, and planning before coming up with the price tag. As people can imagine, he said that is not how competent, responsible organizations build large, complex megaprojects like it. He said it is impossible to determine how much any project will cost if people do not plan, design, and engineer it beforehand. Therefore, he said it “didn’t take long for the Green Line project to start falling off the rails.”The Alberta government slashed it from the original 46 kilometres and 29 stations to 23 kilometres and 15 stations in 2017. The City of Calgary abandoned its north side. Even after cutting it by half of the original size, the Green Line faced massive cost overruns. Calgary city council cut it down to 18 kilometres, abandoning any stations north of the Bow River and going as far south as Shepard. It kept the tunnel under downtown, which contributed to the cost overruns. Even with these further cost-saving measures, it could not be built. Calgary city council shrunk it further and reduced its scope to 10 kilometres and seven stations, running from Eau Claire to Lynnwood/Millican. He said this version serves few Calgarians. Its cost has increased to $6.2 billion. That equals $620 million for each kilometre of track. As the provincial government, he said it has “an obligation to ensure taxpayers’ dollars for infrastructure are spent efficiently, responsibly, and in a way that benefits the most amount of Albertans possible.” He said it was not going to throw billions of dollars on it when it would not address people’s transportation needs. That is why the Alberta government is taking action to fix the Green Line. It will be working with experienced engineers to design a new above-ground alignment integrating the Red and Blue Line, connects with the future Grand Central Station, and stretches south to Shepard and beyond. Dreeshen concluded by saying it has major plans for Calgary with passenger rail. He said it will deliver on them in a way respecting taxpayers. “This government finished Calgary’s Ring Road on time and on budget, and we’re adding lanes to the Deerfoot to help Calgarians spend less time in traffic and more time at home doing the things that they love,” he said. “We want to improve the quality of life for Calgarians, and we’re committed to work with this city council to deliver a Green Line that goes somewhere and that Calgarians can be proud of.” Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek said on Monday she wants to provide the facts about the Green Line being terminated by the Alberta government on September 3. READ MORE: Gondek outlines what she says are facts on Alberta government terminating Calgary Green Line fundingRather than attempt to negotiate, Gondek said all the Alberta government did was send a letter pulling its support and funding. “The impact is devastating,” said Gondek.