So can anyone advise on what Bridgeland Calgary is like as an area to live.
My partner is probably going to be working around Spruce Meadows, is this commuteable as well?

Thanks in advance 1972

In three words. Yuppy, Shabby Chic.

U could JUST about commute cos you heading the wrong way. (ie against the traditional traffic)

Thanks Butch Cassidy

I am a down to earth plain speaking Scotsman, I dont know if I do yuppy

Rgds Scotty 1972

Hey we are talking Yuppy rednecks here!!!!

Seriously what attracted you to bridgeland in the first place?

We land on the 29th of may, and there is apartment for rent there, and it seems to be first place that has not been yet rented and is fairly decent, the only down side is that it has a one year lease. We plan to only own one car, and I am going to be working in the NE, and therefore will either cycle or use public transport.

The other option is to live out of a hotel for a month, but I dont know if I could cope with that.

Rgds Scotty 1972

What length of lease were you loking for? 1 year is quite usual.

We only wanted 6 months, and managed to beat our landlady down from a year to a 7 months' lease last November. However, with housing the way it is just now, any decent rentals apparently have a line of people wanting them, so landlords can afford to be adamant in their conditions and charges!

Thanks Morwenna

we would prefer 6 months, but maybe a year is what we will have to take.

Rgds Scotty 1972

what sites have you checked?

Mainly Rentfaster and HomeRent, they seem to be the best two

rgds Scotty 1972

OK I'll be quiet now

Where in the NE will you be working, Scotty? If you could mention the name of an area, specify an intersection to which you will be close, or even give the exact address, it would help me to figure out the feasibility of your commute.

Hi Judy

thanks for the offer, I am going to be working at this location, 3851 - 23 Street NE Calgary, AB, T2E 6T2 and plan on either using public transport or cycling in the summer.

The main issue is my partner is going to be work near Spruce Meadows, postcode T2J 5G5.

As we plan to only have one car we thought it would be better for her to commute.


We are also considering Kennsington, or the Mission.

Your view would be really appreciated

Rgds Scotty 1972

I like your choices of location Scotty, All have the yuppy\arty\shabby chic links!!!! Not knocking those places at all, however I'd be careful with parts of Mission (but thats just a personal thing).

I'll leave the commuting comments to Judy.

Thanks Butch Cassidy,

I would like to say that I am driving the choice of location, but I am afraid its the better half, I dont mind where we live as long as it convenient for work and is a safe and pleasant area.

Rgds Scotty

As you’re already aware, your partner’s and your jobs will take you in opposite directions. The north part of the city would not be a brilliant place for your partner to live in, from a commuting point of view. It’s true, up to a point, that your partner would be driving against the traffic that was heading northwards towards downtown from the southern suburbs. However, if she used Deerfoot Trail to drive southwards, she still might find it choked with traffic headed for Foothills Industrial Park, which is located in the middle distance of the southeast quadrant. Traffic delays on Deerfoot are more common in winter than in summer.

She could try Blackfoot Trail. That might not be too bad.

To get onto Macleod Trail from the north, she’d first have to go through the downtown core, which obviously would be busy. Once she got through downtown, Macleod Trail would have quite a few traffic lights, but I think the southbound traffic load would not be too bad.

Now I’ll turn my attention to your commute. It seems that any public transit combination you use to reach your place of employment from Bridgeland, Kensington (Hillhurst) or Mission would depend on using the NE line of the C-Train to get to Whitehorn Station. There you’d have to transfer to a bus. The two best choices appear to be the #33 bus and the #57 bus.

If you lived in Kensington (which is called Kensington, but technically is Hillhurst), you’d have to use the NW line of the C-Train to get downtown. Once you were downtown you would need to transfer to a NE train to get to Whitehorn. So that would involve two changes (NW train to NE train in the downtown core, then NE train to bus at Whitehorn Station).

If you lived in Mission you’d have to walk 5 – 8 blocks or catch a bus to 7th Avenue SW, catch the NE train, and then transfer to a bus at Whitehorn Station.

Something else you could consider doing is living somewhere on the route of the #72 and #73 buses. These routes form a big circle that goes through all four quadrants. The #72 bus travels clockwise, while the #73 follows the same route but travels counter-clockwise. I don’t particularly recommend the NE and SE neighbourhoods through which these two buses pass.

However, you could live somewhere near 40th Avenue North, between Edmonton Trail and Centre Street North, or else a little west of Centre Street. If you caught the #72 bus, you could transfer to the #33 bus either at 19th Street NE or else at Whitehorn Station. This would mean that your partner would not be too far from Deerfoot Trail, which is the main north-south artery that she could use to get to the south. However, as I said before, Deerfoot Trail sometimes does get clogged up.

Another option would be to live in the vicinity of Chinook Shopping Mall. There are some apartment complexes on the north side of 58th Avenue SW, west of Macleod Trail. Your partner then would be well placed to make a run to the far south along Macleod Trail. For you it would be best to travel counter-clockwise from this location on the #73 bus. It would be a long-ish bus ride for you, but the trip would involve only one transfer. At Whitehorn Station you could transfer to the #33 bus.

The same principle would apply to living somewhere in the vicinity of Heritage Station. There are some apartments a couple of blocks east of Macleod Trail around Heritage Drive.

Still another option to consider is to live somewhere along the south train line, the one that goes to Somerset / Bridlewood. If you were in the far south, it would make the drive to work very quick and easy for your partner. You could catch the train from one of the more southerly stations (Somerset or Shawnessy) to downtown. When you reached downtown you could transfer to the NE train, and at Whitehorn Station you could transfer to the #33 bus.

Speaking for myself, I dislike transfers on public transit. That’s where delays, if any, are most likely to happen. I would try to keep it down to one transfer if I were you.

You could research more transit options here:

http://www.calgarytransit.com/

But so far I've been discussing this issue mainly from the point of view of a feasible commute. I have not gone into each neighbourhood's charm (or lack thereof). That's a very subjective judgement. I believe there is a risk in committing to a rental property from a distance. I think it would be safer to wait until you arrive here and check out each neighbourhood's "vibe" for yourself.

Anyway, I hope the above information has at least provided you with a starting point.