The Edmonton Chamber of Commerce is disappointed to hear the Valley Line is suffering further delays. This delay will affect businesses along the route and workers who were planning to use the Valley Line to get to work.
The Chamber supports Mayor Sohi’s call for city administration to review how major infrastructure projects are built in Edmonton. We would like to see this review include looking at how the city can better support businesses directly impacted by delays related to major construction projects.
With the rising inflation costs, the impact the construction has had to businesses along the line and, labour shortages that are ongoing, the delay of this project is deeply frustrating to our members and the broader business community.
While it is comforting to hear that the P3 fixed price model used to build the Valley Line LRT has saved the city from taking direct fiscal impact of this delay, the indirect costs of the delay cannot be as easily quantified.
This delay in opening is impacting countless Edmontonians who expected to be commuting via the Valley Line LRT by 2020.