The next stop is: cuts to transit

CALGARY (660 NEWS) – The city is looking at ways to save money and your commute could be impacted.

City council met Monday to discuss how to cut $60 million from the capital budget, following a shortfall in the municipal funding.

RELATED: City budget finalized but more tough decisions on the way

Council is considering a package that would change how transit would operate. It would include more three-car service instead of four-car and a slower integration of newer trains.

“Citizens will see an impact. There was a $100 million cut to a program that was buying new train cars for the CTrain which means those old cars are going to have to have to give us even more miles,” said Mayor Naheed Nenshi.

Nenshi added some cars could be pulled out of service if they don’t work and the trains the city did actually cost them more because they’ve had to purchase them in smaller orders.

The transit cuts are just one way the city is looking to save money as talks about how future infrastructure projects are also taking place.

#Calgary commuters brace yourself. #yyccc looks to save $60M due to budget shortfalls. They're eyeing transit for cuts. Mayor @Nenshi says you can expect more older trains & fewer train cars. He points the finger at UCP, says cuts to programs means fewer services #yyc @660NEWS pic.twitter.com/Y0rlGXqIKe

— Saif Kaisar (@StaySaif) January 28, 2020

As for who should carry the blame for the tough cuts, Nenshi didn’t mince words when pointing the finger at the UCP government.

“We had already taken a huge cut in our capital grants under the NDP government. In the spring, the UCP candidates said that they would hold onto the NDP’s framework when in fact they didn’t, they gave us another ten per cent cut. So we will now get back to 2017 levels of capital grants probably sometime in the mid to late 2030s.”

Alberta’s Municipal Affairs Minister has criticized city council over their cuts, saying they have been overspending for years.

On Tuesday, several members of city council will meet to talk about the next steps for the Green Line LRT project.