If you arrived in Banff on the Saturday of January's skijoring event, you already know what the future looks like. Vehicle access to the townsite was effectively shut down under the weight of a Calgary long weekend, deciding to arrive all at once. Town officials would very much prefer that not become a regular occurrence.
The Town of Banff is now formally pressing Parks Canada to deliver a park-wide transportation framework – and sooner rather than a vague gesture toward 2026.
Banff Transportation Plan: A Commitment That's Already Running Late
Banff National Park recorded 4.5 million visitors in 2025. In the same year, a record 6.9 million vehicles drove into the townsite, with August alone peaking at nearly 900,000. The 2022 park management plan committed to a moving people sustainably framework by 2024. It is currently 2026.
Mayor Corrie DiManno raised the issue directly at the 26th annual Banff National Park planning forum in March, asking Parks Canada for a meaningful update. Her concern was plain: without a comprehensive plan, the skijoring gridlock stops being an anomaly and starts being a Tuesday in August.
What the Expert Panel Actually Said
In late 2022, Parks Canada's own advisory panel on Moving People Sustainably in the Banff-Bow Valley delivered a 72-page report with a fairly unambiguous conclusion. Reduce private vehicles. Build mass transit from Calgary – train or bus. Make it affordable enough that people actually use it.
The panel identified Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Johnston Canyon, and the Minnewanka Loop as the priority corridors, where congestion is worst and the case for restricting private vehicle access is strongest. It also flagged that simply expanding parking lots is not a sustainable answer – and noted that paving over montane habitat to add more stalls is not consistent with protecting the park's ecological integrity.
A large transportation hub at the north end of town, near Mount Norquay Road or at the east end of Banff Avenue, was among the panel's suggestions. The free 500-stall lot at the Banff train station already exists as a starting point.
What Parks Canada Is Actually Doing
Daniella Rubeling, acting superintendent of Banff National Park, said a draft framework with guiding principles is in progress, with more detail expected by the end of 2026. Ongoing visitor use management planning for Lake Louise and Lake Minnewanka, along with new pilot programmes – including paid parking at the hot pools and gondola access on Sulphur Mountain beginning in May – are informing that work.
Rubeling was clear that Parks Canada does not intend to wait for a finished framework before continuing to act. Decisions, she said, will be data-driven and developed in collaboration with partners.
The Roam Bus Is Doing What It Can
The existing Roam public transit system is not exactly struggling for passengers. It carried a record three million riders across the network in 2025, making it the third-largest transit system in Alberta by ridership. Nine new buses came online last year. There are no additional buses for the Town of Banff currently scheduled.
Mayor DiManno noted that the upcoming summer is set to be busier than ever. The federal government's relaunched Canada Strong Pass offers free national park access to all visitors from June 19 to September 7 – a popular programme that reliably moves the needle on visitation numbers.
The Gap Between Planning and Parking
The concern from the town is not abstract. Without a park-wide transportation plan, officials worry the backups, the unsafe roadside parking, and the 40-minute queues at the east gate stop being worst-case scenarios and start being standard operating procedure.
Parks Canada has the data, the advisory panel report, and by its own account a draft framework underway. The town, meanwhile, has a skijoring Saturday it would rather not repeat at scale.
The summer of 2026 will offer a useful data point either way.