Kelowna councillor pushing for electric light rail line linking Osoyoos and Kamloops

When UBC Okanagan professor Dr. Gord Lovegrove ran for Kelowna city council in 2022, he talked about one idea that certainly set him apart from other candidates.

Lovegrove envisions an electric passenger light rail line through the Okanagan Valley, linking Osoyoos and Kamloops, as a climate friendly solution to alleviate traffic through the region.

He was elected to Kelowna’s eight-seat council in October 2022 and that dream has in no way left his mind.

Lovegrove, who teaches in UBCO’s School of Engineering, continues to study the feasibility of an affordable passenger train that models a concept that began in Germany 40 years ago.

“Hydrail tram-trains—powered by a hydrogen fuel cell/battery—is a passenger rail that acts like a tram in cities and like a train between communities. This is a new concept to North America,” he explains.

“They are self-powered, low-floor and a zero-emission technology, which differs from typical heavy-rail, high-floor, locomotive-pulled passenger cars. This gives hydrail the advantage of being able to climb hills and (is) more affordable than highway widening.”

In fact, Lovegrove’s research suggests that over 30 years, an Okanagan Valley Electric Regional Passenger Rail (OVER PR) would be a much more cost-effective solution than widening Hwy 97.

In fact, he claims the benefits in that time would total more than $45 billion, outweighing its capital and operating costs by nine to one.

“The Okanagan Valley is expected to continue with significant population growth, tourism and traffic congestion which leads to increased greenhouse gas emissions, as well as more vehicles and highway fatalities,” he notes.

“If communities agree to proceed with OVER PR planning this valley-long zero-emission, passenger rail service could significantly enhance transport equity, safety and congestion while also providing a more affordable, resilient and environmentally friendly choice for valley residents, businesses and tourists.”

Researchers recently published a study on the technical and feasibility of OVER PR, a first of its kind in North America, in the journal Sustainability.

It analysed the undulating Hwy 97 route with its steep hills, the toughest test of the light rail line’s feasibility, which would result in a trip of around four hours to complete the 342-kilometre journey between Osoyoos and Kamloops.

The tram-train would travel around 90 km/h between cities, but slower through municipalities as it manages city traffic flow.

“Using embedded rails, sharing existing and HOV lanes as well as highway rights-of-way, or medians, between cities, would drastically reduce the need for land acquisition without taking away capacity,” Lovegrove says.

“The route would also be designed to integrate with regional bus services to construct an optimal arrival and departure schedule.”

It’s expected that a hypothetical OVER PR system would attract more than 13,000 passengers per day and would have economic, social and ecological benefits for both tourists and residents.

You can view the entire study on the feasibility of OVER PR published in the journal Sustainability by clicking this link.