Calgary Transit extends service during Stampede with 24-hour CTrain and express bus routes
The CTrain operates with five-minute morning frequency and 10-minute express buses run until 1 a.m. to handle the 1.5 million expected visitors.
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Calgary Transit is extending service throughout the Stampede to handle the expected influx of 1.5 million visitors, both locals and tourists. The transit authority recorded more than 93 million trips in 2025, but sees a notable spike in July when Stampede Park's location near the CTrain network draws record ridership.
Starting Thursday during the Sneak-A-Peek event, the CTrain will operate 24 hours. During the 10-day festival, the light rail runs with five-minute frequency during morning rush hour, 10-minute frequency in afternoons and evenings, and 20-minute frequency overnight. Calgary Transit also introduced two Stampede express bus routes: Route 405 operates from North Pointe bus terminal with 10-minute service until 1 a.m., while Route 406 runs from the Douglas Glen terminal in the southeast with service every 15 minutes until the same time.
Jonathan Lea, Calgary Transit's senior leader of service design, said one of the biggest challenges is accommodating increased ridership during high-traffic events, such as the parade on opening day or after the nightly Grandstand shows when crowds exit simultaneously.
"We use data from previous years, so we add extra trains during those times," Lea said. "We even have extra trains called floaters that we keep close to Stampede Park, so if things get really busy, we can add an extra train or two into the system."
Another challenge is helping passengers unfamiliar with the transit system — tourists visiting for the first time or residents who don't typically ride public transit. On parade day, staff position themselves at suburban CTrain stations early in the morning to help passengers pay fares and navigate the system. After the parade, transit employees work downtown along 7th Avenue to load CTrain cars for passengers heading home or to Stampede Park.
While Calgary Transit hires temporary fare collectors during Stampede, it cannot hire additional bus and train operators, so it relies on existing personnel and overtime to maintain smooth operations. Operators are constrained by provincially legislated maximum working hours within a 24-hour period.
