Mountain Ave Express Bus Lane and Separated Multi-Use Trail

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The Town of Banff has approval to design and construct an express bus lane coming down Mountain Avenue and a dedicated, enhanced bicycle/multi-use trail beside the road, between Spray Avenue and Middle Springs.

The expanded roadway for an express bus lane and the enhanced trail will be built in the summer and fall of 2024.

Banff Town Council has a priority to reduce traffic congestion in Banff by reducing the reliance on personal vehicles. By providing faster service for buses, more people will take transit and leave their vehicles parked at hotels, campgrounds and in downtown or Train Station parking lots. Banff Town Council supported this project as another initiative to reduce vehicles on our streets and to respond to public support for measures to reduce traffic on Mountain Avenue.

This project complements other initiatives in Banff that encourage parking and taking transit and have successfully reduced the number of vehicles travelling up Mountain Ave, relative to vehicles coming into town. Vehicles travelling up Mountain Ave in the summer of 2022 were down 19% from 2019, while transit ridership is up 18%.

The project will decrease traffic congestion for those who must drive. Visitors to the gondola, Upper Hot Springs and Rimrock Hotel will be incentivized to take transit instead of personal vehicles, which will reduce the number of vehicles on the road. Tour buses, gondola shuttle bus, and Roam Public Transit will have a dedicated bus lane heading northbound (downhill), from the town boundary (which is just south of Middle Springs Drive) to Spray Avenue. Bicycle riders will also be able to choose to use the bus lane downhill, or the new dedicated multi-use trail.

An enhanced, separated multi-use trail will provide cyclists and pedestrians with a safer route the full length of the road, between the multi-use trail connection at the YWCA and the neighbourhoods along Mountain Avenue. Experienced cyclists will still be able to ride on the road if they prefer.

Opportunities to extend the multi-use trail from Middle Springs Drive to the Sulphur Mountain parking lots are recommended for future consideration by Parks Canada.

The express bus lane at the Spray Avenue traffic light will have a signal advance to quickly move through the intersection. Bicycles and all buses will be allowed in the express bus lane heading down Mountain Ave.

Public Engagement

Banff residents will be invited to learn more about the project, seek clarification on the work and the timelines, and provide feedback in summer 2023.

  • Live Online Zoom meeting - Presentation and Q&A - August 23, 2023 at 4-5 p.m.
  • In-person Presentation – September 5, 5-7 p.m. at Middle Springs Cabin
  • In-person Presentation – September 14, 4-6 p.m. at the pavilion at the rec grounds
  • Engagement with property owners along Mountain Ave – June-August
  • Online questionnaire - August 28 - September 24

Banff Town Council will review the final design during budget discussions in November and December. The budget will set the final construction budget for 2024 roadway expansion and multi-use trail development.

The Mountain Avenue project:

  • There is public support for continuing to reduce traffic delays on Mountain Avenue as a priority
  • Banff Town Council has a strategic priority to "reduce reliance on personal vehicles"
  • An express bus lane will prioritize transit and buses, increasing their use and reducing personal vehicles on the road
  • This street has the greatest congestion in peak season
  • No parking will be removed – there is no parking on this street
  • The existing traffic lane will not be affected – an additional bus lane will be added
  • Private property will not be affected – the expanded road width for the extra lane will be completely inside the public land dedicated to roadways and utilities
  • Construction is planned for summer and fall 2024

The objective is to improve travel times for public transit and other buses, and incentivize more people to use buses rather than personal vehicles. Removing personal vehicles from the limited roadways in Banff will help reduce traffic congestion.

This project will contribute to a number of other initiatives in Banff that have been successful in reducing traffic delays on the southside of Banff, including the creation of a free parking lot at the Train Station and an integrated communications campaign to discourage people from driving, starting with targeted marketing in Calgary, continuing with a free gondola shuttle service, and signage throughout downtown Banff discouraging people from driving across the bridge when parking on Sulphur Mountain is full.

Although the Downtown Pedestrian Zone may add travel time for vehicles detoured on adjacent streets, data shows that it does not add to northbound travel times towards downtown. In fact, after the pedestrian zone re-opened to vehicle traffic in 2022, Banff saw an 8% increase in the number of vehicles travelling over the bridge and an increase in travel time from the top of Mountain Ave to downtown. In addition, a trial of a lane reversal on the three-lane vehicle bridge did not show improvements to north-bound travel times.

Funding: Estimated construction cost in 2024 $1.5 million, to be finalized in budget review in late 2023. In 2022, Council approved funding sources of $620,000 from the federal Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program and the town contribution is funded 100% from the Visitor Pay Parking reserve.

Rendering of the dedicated transit lane and a shared trail, approaching the intersection at Spray Avenue. Transit and tour buses will have an advance at the intersection before other north-bound traffic. People on bicycles, tour buses, and Roam would be the only vehicles allowed in the bus-only lane.

Project Background

The Town of Banff is only 4 square kilometres in area. The town cannot expand or add roads within the municipal boundaries. The top tourist attraction in the Banff area is the Sulphur Mountain Gondola, which is outside the municipality, at the south end of Mountain Avenue. The town boundary is just after Middle Springs Drive.

A significant number of visitors travel from the TransCanada Highway through the town to destinations south and outside the town site, such as the Sulphur Mountain Gondola, the Upper Hot Springs and the Rimrock Hotel. Vehicles travelling from these locations back into town cause traffic congestion. There is only one lane northbound and one lane southbound.

Although free parking exists, outside the town site on Sulphur Mountain, the available spaces often fill up, forcing drivers to return immediately into town, exacerbating traffic congestion. Traffic data from 2019-21 shows that up to 50% of the vehicles that drive up to the gondola parking lot during peak summer periods turn around immediately and become part of the traffic line up heading back north towards downtown. The Town and Parks Canada have initiated projects to discourage drivers from driving to the south side when the parking lots are full.

Mountain Avenue continues to be most affected by this traffic congestion, creating delays for visitors returning into town, and all residents who live in neighbourhoods on either side of Mountain Avenue. Although Mountain Avenue is well-served by Roam Public Transit and other commercial bus services, buses are often delayed in traffic.

The gondola has a dedicated free shuttle service and other bus operators also serve the gondola and hot springs.

In the summer of 2022, the Town of Banff gathered feedback on a proposal to create a dedicated express bus lane on Spray Avenue. The concept would have converted a parking lane into a bus-only lane. The public feedback identified a preference for improving traffic on Mountain Ave with a dedicated bus lane instead. The Spray Ave project was not approved due to the lower impact on traffic improvements, when compared to Mountain Ave., and the negative feedback about removing parking.

An express bus lane will:

  • Provide a better experience for all users
  • Move bus riders through the congested areas faster, creating an incentive for more people to use transit. This would take more vehicles off the road, resulting in further decreases in traffic congestion.
  • Allow Roam Public Transit to become more efficient, producing better results for tax-payer investment.
  • Reduce traffic for residents who have to drive
  • Maintain safety for all roadway users and pedestrians

How feedback is used

The feedback on the Spray Avenue project collected throughout all the engagement activities determined a preference for a dedicated bus lane towards downtown on Mountain Avenue.

A summary “What We Heard” report was presented to Town Council in August 2022. Due to the direct result of the public engagement, Council directed Administration to move ahead with the design of an Express Bus Lane on Mountain Avenue. The Mountain Avenue Express Bus Lane and dedicated multi-use trail project will be added to the budget for approval in December 2023 and implemented in 2024.

Resident engagement in 2023 will focus on providing information about the project and providing opportunities for residents to provide feedback. Input on the project will be recorded for further consideration.

Confirmed Mountain Avenue project design elements:

  • Project only provides a north-bound express bus lane (heading downtown), because southbound traffic does not show delays
  • Location is between the town boundary (just south of Middle Springs Drive) and Spray Avenue
  • The dedicated bus lane would be created by widening the roadway in several locations, with in the public land dedicated to the roads and utilities (no private land will be affected)
  • Roam Transit and other coach/buses would be permitted to use the bus-only lane
  • People on bicycles could choose to use the express bus lane when going northbound, downhill
  • The dedicated lane would be indicated with pavement markings and signage
  • The traffic lights at Spray Avenue and Mountain Avenue would give buses a green advance, ahead of other northbound vehicles
  • The intents is to maintain the current duration of the green light for northbound Mountain Avenue vehicles
  • Addition of 2 pedestrian crosswalks across Mountain Ave.
  • Removal of sidewalk (approximately 15 metres) on the east side of Mountain Avenue, across from the Parks Canada Administration Building
  • Bow River Bridge traffic direction for the three lanes is not affected by this project
  • The new bus lane and dedicate multi-use trail will be built in 2024


The Town of Banff has approval to design and construct an express bus lane coming down Mountain Avenue and a dedicated, enhanced bicycle/multi-use trail beside the road, between Spray Avenue and Middle Springs.

The expanded roadway for an express bus lane and the enhanced trail will be built in the summer and fall of 2024.

Banff Town Council has a priority to reduce traffic congestion in Banff by reducing the reliance on personal vehicles. By providing faster service for buses, more people will take transit and leave their vehicles parked at hotels, campgrounds and in downtown or Train Station parking lots. Banff Town Council supported this project as another initiative to reduce vehicles on our streets and to respond to public support for measures to reduce traffic on Mountain Avenue.

This project complements other initiatives in Banff that encourage parking and taking transit and have successfully reduced the number of vehicles travelling up Mountain Ave, relative to vehicles coming into town. Vehicles travelling up Mountain Ave in the summer of 2022 were down 19% from 2019, while transit ridership is up 18%.

The project will decrease traffic congestion for those who must drive. Visitors to the gondola, Upper Hot Springs and Rimrock Hotel will be incentivized to take transit instead of personal vehicles, which will reduce the number of vehicles on the road. Tour buses, gondola shuttle bus, and Roam Public Transit will have a dedicated bus lane heading northbound (downhill), from the town boundary (which is just south of Middle Springs Drive) to Spray Avenue. Bicycle riders will also be able to choose to use the bus lane downhill, or the new dedicated multi-use trail.

An enhanced, separated multi-use trail will provide cyclists and pedestrians with a safer route the full length of the road, between the multi-use trail connection at the YWCA and the neighbourhoods along Mountain Avenue. Experienced cyclists will still be able to ride on the road if they prefer.

Opportunities to extend the multi-use trail from Middle Springs Drive to the Sulphur Mountain parking lots are recommended for future consideration by Parks Canada.

The express bus lane at the Spray Avenue traffic light will have a signal advance to quickly move through the intersection. Bicycles and all buses will be allowed in the express bus lane heading down Mountain Ave.

Public Engagement

Banff residents will be invited to learn more about the project, seek clarification on the work and the timelines, and provide feedback in summer 2023.

  • Live Online Zoom meeting - Presentation and Q&A - August 23, 2023 at 4-5 p.m.
  • In-person Presentation – September 5, 5-7 p.m. at Middle Springs Cabin
  • In-person Presentation – September 14, 4-6 p.m. at the pavilion at the rec grounds
  • Engagement with property owners along Mountain Ave – June-August
  • Online questionnaire - August 28 - September 24

Banff Town Council will review the final design during budget discussions in November and December. The budget will set the final construction budget for 2024 roadway expansion and multi-use trail development.

The Mountain Avenue project:

  • There is public support for continuing to reduce traffic delays on Mountain Avenue as a priority
  • Banff Town Council has a strategic priority to "reduce reliance on personal vehicles"
  • An express bus lane will prioritize transit and buses, increasing their use and reducing personal vehicles on the road
  • This street has the greatest congestion in peak season
  • No parking will be removed – there is no parking on this street
  • The existing traffic lane will not be affected – an additional bus lane will be added
  • Private property will not be affected – the expanded road width for the extra lane will be completely inside the public land dedicated to roadways and utilities
  • Construction is planned for summer and fall 2024

The objective is to improve travel times for public transit and other buses, and incentivize more people to use buses rather than personal vehicles. Removing personal vehicles from the limited roadways in Banff will help reduce traffic congestion.

This project will contribute to a number of other initiatives in Banff that have been successful in reducing traffic delays on the southside of Banff, including the creation of a free parking lot at the Train Station and an integrated communications campaign to discourage people from driving, starting with targeted marketing in Calgary, continuing with a free gondola shuttle service, and signage throughout downtown Banff discouraging people from driving across the bridge when parking on Sulphur Mountain is full.

Although the Downtown Pedestrian Zone may add travel time for vehicles detoured on adjacent streets, data shows that it does not add to northbound travel times towards downtown. In fact, after the pedestrian zone re-opened to vehicle traffic in 2022, Banff saw an 8% increase in the number of vehicles travelling over the bridge and an increase in travel time from the top of Mountain Ave to downtown. In addition, a trial of a lane reversal on the three-lane vehicle bridge did not show improvements to north-bound travel times.

Funding: Estimated construction cost in 2024 $1.5 million, to be finalized in budget review in late 2023. In 2022, Council approved funding sources of $620,000 from the federal Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program and the town contribution is funded 100% from the Visitor Pay Parking reserve.

Rendering of the dedicated transit lane and a shared trail, approaching the intersection at Spray Avenue. Transit and tour buses will have an advance at the intersection before other north-bound traffic. People on bicycles, tour buses, and Roam would be the only vehicles allowed in the bus-only lane.

Project Background

The Town of Banff is only 4 square kilometres in area. The town cannot expand or add roads within the municipal boundaries. The top tourist attraction in the Banff area is the Sulphur Mountain Gondola, which is outside the municipality, at the south end of Mountain Avenue. The town boundary is just after Middle Springs Drive.

A significant number of visitors travel from the TransCanada Highway through the town to destinations south and outside the town site, such as the Sulphur Mountain Gondola, the Upper Hot Springs and the Rimrock Hotel. Vehicles travelling from these locations back into town cause traffic congestion. There is only one lane northbound and one lane southbound.

Although free parking exists, outside the town site on Sulphur Mountain, the available spaces often fill up, forcing drivers to return immediately into town, exacerbating traffic congestion. Traffic data from 2019-21 shows that up to 50% of the vehicles that drive up to the gondola parking lot during peak summer periods turn around immediately and become part of the traffic line up heading back north towards downtown. The Town and Parks Canada have initiated projects to discourage drivers from driving to the south side when the parking lots are full.

Mountain Avenue continues to be most affected by this traffic congestion, creating delays for visitors returning into town, and all residents who live in neighbourhoods on either side of Mountain Avenue. Although Mountain Avenue is well-served by Roam Public Transit and other commercial bus services, buses are often delayed in traffic.

The gondola has a dedicated free shuttle service and other bus operators also serve the gondola and hot springs.

In the summer of 2022, the Town of Banff gathered feedback on a proposal to create a dedicated express bus lane on Spray Avenue. The concept would have converted a parking lane into a bus-only lane. The public feedback identified a preference for improving traffic on Mountain Ave with a dedicated bus lane instead. The Spray Ave project was not approved due to the lower impact on traffic improvements, when compared to Mountain Ave., and the negative feedback about removing parking.

An express bus lane will:

  • Provide a better experience for all users
  • Move bus riders through the congested areas faster, creating an incentive for more people to use transit. This would take more vehicles off the road, resulting in further decreases in traffic congestion.
  • Allow Roam Public Transit to become more efficient, producing better results for tax-payer investment.
  • Reduce traffic for residents who have to drive
  • Maintain safety for all roadway users and pedestrians

How feedback is used

The feedback on the Spray Avenue project collected throughout all the engagement activities determined a preference for a dedicated bus lane towards downtown on Mountain Avenue.

A summary “What We Heard” report was presented to Town Council in August 2022. Due to the direct result of the public engagement, Council directed Administration to move ahead with the design of an Express Bus Lane on Mountain Avenue. The Mountain Avenue Express Bus Lane and dedicated multi-use trail project will be added to the budget for approval in December 2023 and implemented in 2024.

Resident engagement in 2023 will focus on providing information about the project and providing opportunities for residents to provide feedback. Input on the project will be recorded for further consideration.

Confirmed Mountain Avenue project design elements:

  • Project only provides a north-bound express bus lane (heading downtown), because southbound traffic does not show delays
  • Location is between the town boundary (just south of Middle Springs Drive) and Spray Avenue
  • The dedicated bus lane would be created by widening the roadway in several locations, with in the public land dedicated to the roads and utilities (no private land will be affected)
  • Roam Transit and other coach/buses would be permitted to use the bus-only lane
  • People on bicycles could choose to use the express bus lane when going northbound, downhill
  • The dedicated lane would be indicated with pavement markings and signage
  • The traffic lights at Spray Avenue and Mountain Avenue would give buses a green advance, ahead of other northbound vehicles
  • The intents is to maintain the current duration of the green light for northbound Mountain Avenue vehicles
  • Addition of 2 pedestrian crosswalks across Mountain Ave.
  • Removal of sidewalk (approximately 15 metres) on the east side of Mountain Avenue, across from the Parks Canada Administration Building
  • Bow River Bridge traffic direction for the three lanes is not affected by this project
  • The new bus lane and dedicate multi-use trail will be built in 2024


  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    Mountain Ave Express Bus Lane and Separated Multi-Use Trail Survey

    PRIVACY: Any personal information provided in this survey is collected under the authority of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy (FOIP) Act, Section 33(c). The information you provide will be shared only in aggregate form with no connection to individuals and will be used for planning purposes around the Mountain Ave Express Bus Lane and Separated Multi-Use Trail. No personal information will be shared with anyone outside the Town project team. If you have any questions regarding the collection and use of this information, please contact the Town of Banff Director of Communications at: communications@banff.ca or 403.762.1207. 

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Page last updated: 02 Apr 2024, 04:24 PM