West LRT Extension
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION | CALGARY, CANADA
Designed while at GEC, Construction completed in 2012
The West LRT is a key part of Calgary’s commitment to supporting community growth, connecting over 44,000 riders daily—a number expected to surpass 120,000 as western neighborhoods expand. Designed within a sensitive inner-city environment, it features Calgary’s most diverse range of station types, including at-grade, elevated, underground, trenched, and median-located stations.
GEC played a vital role in station and urban design, ensuring seamless community integration and alignment with the City of Calgary’s transit-oriented development (TOD) plans. GEC also developed the delivery model and work plan, authoring a White Paper on Station Design Logistics and Timing, which established a strategy to accelerate the project’s design-build process.
A milestone for Calgary, Westbrook Station became the city’s first underground LRT station and its first built example of TOD. The north station head is integrated into a 100,000-square-foot mixed-use office building, jumpstarting site redevelopment, while the south station head is set within a future urban park.
The station’s skylights bring daylight to underground platforms and double as emergency smoke exhausts. Designed with safety in mind, clear sightlines from street-level entries down to the platforms enhance visibility and security. By combining innovation, efficiency, and urban integration, West LRT sets a new standard for Calgary’s transit future.
Photos Courtesy of GEC Architecture
