Vehicle volume currently being experienced by Banff ‘not sustainable’

The Canada Strong Pass allowing free entry into national parks brings joy to many, but it also creates challenges for those who work at them.

Officials with the Town of Banff say the mountain community is experiencing an increase in vehicle volume that isn’t sustainable.

“By the end of July, we are up six per cent vehicle volumes year to date,” said Mayor Corrie DiManno.

“We are definitely seeing an uptick in vehicle volumes.”

The town points to the Canada Strong Pass as one of several factors attracting visitation to the area, along with Calgary’s booming population, a strong U.S. dollar and the sentiment of Canadians wanting to vacation at home due to tariff disputes.

“We’re certainly seeing Canadians and everyone take advantage of the Canada Strong Pass, which, again, we are so glad that people can connect with their national park system, but we do know that we cannot handle that volume of vehicles in the long term,” DiManno said.

The Canada Strong Pass, announced by Prime Minister Mark Carney in the spring, effectively makes access to national parks and historic sites free until Sept. 2.

“We need to continue to work with our provincial and federal partners to look at mass transit—whether it’s bus or rail—now and later. We know that it is simply not sustainable,” DiManno said.

On June 30, Banff had the second-highest one-day record for the number of vehicles recorded at its entrances, with 33,337 vehicles.

“When the Town of Banff counters reach 24,000 vehicles in one day, the result is traffic congestion somewhere in the town site,” the town said in a statement to CTV News.

Its busiest day on record came in 2017, when park passes were also free, recording 34,275 vehicles.