Edmonton LRT Valley Line: Mill Woods - 102 Street

Take a ride on Edmonton's newest LRT Line: The Valley Line between Mill Woods and 102 Street downtown. The line opened to the public on November 4, 2023. This footage was recorded on November 8, 2023.

[@Oilerator_]

The voice announcements are terrible, what happened to the guy who did the announcements on the Capital and Metro lines? Also, it's so slow. I struggle to understand why the city didn't just stick with the same format we have for the other 2 lines.

[@VickieChristenyeg1]

The dude that did the capital and metro lines Retired

[@raistlinvanspronsentravel]

right, Vancouver at least has the same person doing the announcements for all 3 lines

[@garyhersemeyer2642]

This is the only good way to film (record?) an LRT video, that is from the operator's point of view.

[@AndrewSephiTV]

I used this line a few times this week. I commute between Boonie Doon and Downtown everyday. So everytime I get the chance I am riding this line.

[@ZacharyShilling]

How did you commute before? Do you like it?

[@AndrewSephiTV]

@@ZacharyShilling Before I used the bus line 73. I like it. It is faster than the bus line. The end location is exactly the same as the bus stop. The only downside is the frequency. There are more busses doing this route then LRTs.

[@djwildbill2008]

We’ve been waiting about 14 years in Toronto for the first LRT line to open on Eglinton Ave.

[@joshuabom64]

probably be the same before we see green line in calgary.

[@robertjarman3703]

About 30 seconds of wait time at intersections where the train had to stop at all, and it only did so four times over 13 km of track or once every 3.25 km. Not bad at all. Own ROW. Far from a slow streetcar. Average speed was 30 km/h which is not ideal, but it is reliable during heavy traffic.

[@Abrothers12]

I was in Edmonton when they were testing the route. It’s cool to see it up and running for the public now

[@coreymcdonald7745]

If I had a complaint about the new line, it’s that it’s too long of a travel time between Grey Nuns and Millbourne, and Millbourne and Davies Station. I feel there could be another station in between…

[@MaxLazy10]

I actually worked at TransEd briefly last year, and on some of our drawings there were notes of a "potential future station" north of the tracks leading to the OMF (before the train crosses Roper Road). So it seems like it's something the city has at least considered. I don't think it was ever planned to be built in this phase though, seeing that even the original animations for the Valley Line didn't include anything between Millbourne and Davies.

[@MatthewBoonstra]

@@MaxLazy10 I went on a walking tour of the line with city staff a couple of years ago, and I can confirm this! The trackway switches to track embedded in concrete in preparation for a future station (you can see this at 6:46). They said that the city is waiting for if/when more development occurs in the area that would increase demand for a stop.

[@djwildbill2008]

Maybe you could do a little investigating for the transit system about your enquiry. See if there are two places in between each of the stops mentioned that might make good stops and propose them to Edmonton Council.

[@TheBrownSheepOnYT]

My complaint would be there should be a station between muttart and strathearn, it is a quite long journey. And why not a name for this station: Gallagher (named after Gallagher park) Anyway it is all good so no complaints left.

[@wesderngentleman8820]

Speed limit is quite low. I guess it’s because there’s traffic lights with roads

[@cherylsemrau7100]

I live in Edmonton. Thank you.

[@rykmat2542]

I know, Canada is a superrich country. But still. Why TF is the whole of this tramline built ballastless? Here in Europe, normal tracks on sleepers are about one-half price.

[@yobb1n544]

Love how the stations have little warming booths for the winter. The train doesn't seem to go very fast, are there plans to speed it up in the future?

[@coreymcdonald7745]

It follows the posted traffic speed limits when sharing the road

[@daviddittrich5764]

Hopefully, it mostly has the right of way and signalling could be improved. No reason not to see faster speeds considering the top speed is 80km/h

[@chrthewrestler2301]

yes it is very slow.

[@Merle1987]

It should have been elevated. It's going at a snail's pace.

[@coreymcdonald7745]

Keep in mind too, it’s not running at its full frequency/capacity yet. Maybe once trains get going every 5 minutes, it’ll go faster when it’s not in traffic.

[@TransCanadaPhil]

Nice! Glad to see it open. It's interesting how Edmonton went with a more Eurostyle Tram-like low-floor system with all the embedded track for this line rather than sticking with the more Metro-style system they have for the other line. They can't mix and match trains. I noticed they don't have any railway crossing barriers either unlike all the other LRT lines in both Edmonton and Calgary for that matter. Hope that won't cause collisions. Like I said, this seems to be more like the urban trams I see in Amsterdam or German cities rather than the sort of light-metro that we're used to seeing in Alberta, am I wrong? When does the second leg to WEM get built?

[@chrisvazquez7]

The west extension is already in its second construction season. I think it’s slated to open in 2026.

[@TransCanadaPhil]

@@chrisvazquez7 ahh, it’ll be handy to be able to travel to WEM from downtown

[@DP-gt7sr]

I noticed it runs through a lot of residential areas. I would not want to be hearing those railway bells every 5 minutes or so if they had them.

[@dylanschmidt5232]

At this rate the one to west ed won't open for another 10 plus years, I mean remember how long it took them to open this line

[@simplymeconnie4003]

Lived in Edmonton my entire life pretty much and used the train daily. Moved away while this was being built. I drive now and have no reason to take the train, so this is nice to see. Thank you! I now also understand how there are so many accidents with the train.

[@wjrshepherd10]

Other than downtown I really don’t like how they are using traffic lights as opposed to railway crossing gates at the roadways and pedestrian crossings. Outside of downtown, the train should always have the right of way.

[@justaguy6862]

Too slow :(

[@brettthomas5605]

Now having watched this, am I missing something here,there's absolutely no fencing along the tracks to prevent people from cutting across between the intersections?

[@jessebrook1688]

Absolutely none. There were four accidents before it opened, but it's been operational a week now with no incidents.

[@dylanschmidt5232]

Still don't trust it, first of all it took over 3 years of delays, another reason, people keep hitting it with their vehicles, thanks but no thanks, I like to know I'm safe, and that I won't be involved in a collision

[@chrisvazquez7]

It was delayed because they found decencies. If they didn't spend the time to fix them, it would be unsafe to ride, but they fixed them. As far as collisions (which are nearly always the fault of the motorist), you wouldn't get injured if you're a passenger on the train -- you would probably hardly feel it. I get your concerns, but it's statistically much safer to travel on the LRT than to drive.

[@calvinrovinescu6166]

Wow, it basically never goes over 55km/h. I really how the Green Line in Calgary won't be that miserably slow!

[@Jay-jq6bl]

Yeah, I don't get it either. Why bother spending the money if you're going to take 4x as long as a car? Isn't the point to be a viable alternative?

[@coreymcdonald7745]

It can hold 550 people, if there is 2 cars attached. That's the point. 550 people, every 5 minutes once they increase the frequency to every 5 minutes during peak hours. Maybe the speed will increase once it hits that frequency too, for spacing.

[@leehaber]

I was kind of hoping those signs were in mph but no. That is slow. Some of the sections, especially beside the highway should be 80 kph.

[@sub_2719]

It's too slow

[@pjimmbojimmbo1990]

Fu*ked Up a lot of Roads for this Thing,

[@indians1161]

26:58

[@navdeepbedi9155]

Congratulations,, Very nice view ,Driver is doing great job 🎉🎉

[@dave_yeg8596]

it's a joke. all the money that alberta had over the years and they neglected transit. go and stand at a bus stop first thing in the morning and freeze trying to get to work. the montreal metro makes this look like wagon train.

[@SigmaRho2922]

The lines should be denoted by colors

[@AnhTuPhucDerrickHoangCanada]

what I don't know what

[@JamesArsenault]

Too bad I miss riding that new line as I move back home to Ontario in 2015.

[@vmitchinson]

I can not understand why Edmonton buildts on the serface. In a climate where winter is longer then summer it makes more sense to go underground. I wonder if the designers/city council did any long term cost analysis comparing the cost over 50 years or longer. It has to cost a lot more for maintence given our extreme weather conditions compared to consistent temperatures underground. By going underground the constant hassle with other transport modes.

[@westfieldplayz]

7:42

[@keithbouchard2007]

its been open for how long and i still haven't taken a ride on the valley line myself

[@kibaanazuka332]

Is it just me or is this train just slow as molasses even on seperated ROWs

[@jamesloosemore297]

There has been a provision for another stop at roper road by the Tim's, the base is already in place.

[@highspeeddream3980]

It would be much better if train is operated by battery power, there are no electric cable along the railway!

[@leehaber]

Why is there ventilation in an electric rail tunnel? This is the first time I've ever seen such a thing.

[@eaea2332]

Congratulations, I think it looks good, very nice stations and it seems to move smooth.

[@doinafred3049]

Congrats! Wonderful job. 🌷

[@lifenatureinalbertacanada9317]

Make a Timelapse version

[@birhaneniguse1068]

👍👍👍🇨🇦

[@damonster5000]

We did the fireproofing on the red tunnel portal structure, its literally just a giant pigeon nest

[@TrevorSomethingIsGod]

Awesome profile picture dude ;)

[@thisiswhatbrianthinksadventure]

Amazing!

[@OliversElevators]

Congrats, Canada, on building yet another slow-ass light rail line. First it was Kitchener-Waterloo ION, now it’s the Valley Line, and next it’ll be the Finch West and Eglinton Crosstown lines in Toronto. Could you not have built a straighter, more grade-separated alignment? This thing isn’t much faster than a tram it seems.

[@JayFow]

You've literally missed the montreal rem and also The Future Ontario line in toronto, the hell u talkin bout?

[@OliversElevators]

@@JayFowneither of those are/will be light rail systems. They’re both considered light metro systems because they run high-floor trains in a completely grade-separated alignment, not in the middle of the street using low-floor vehicles like the ION, Valley Line, and Eglinton Crosstown/Finch West. Because their alignment is completely separate from other road/pedestrian traffic, and their stop spacing is wider, they’ll be able to reach higher speeds.

[@JayFow]

@@OliversElevators I know that, but I meant that you didn't know about those projects

[@OliversElevators]

@@JayFow​​⁠I did know about them, I just didn’t include them in my comment because they’re not light rail systems.

[@jessebrook1688]

We built the cheap option, not the best one. We knew that going in.

[@grahamh8631]

I don’t know if it’s good for January

[@trainrover]

new transit projects in teaming central Canada are the continent's ones that're unnecessarily being fouled by fuckingly useless corporate tat :brrrRrr: meanwhile, other places like this one take to :gasping: expressiveness ;)

[@user-so2xo4tn4c]

the drivers head bobbing around is annoying

[@chrisvazquez7]

Yes I agree. That’s why I changed the position of my camera after Davies Station.