Council Support

Growing support among city councils:

Banff

Over the years, Banff town council has struggled with managing and balancing both tourist visits to the town and the growing challenges of dealing with the ever-increasing volume of vehicle traffic throughout the area. Several solutions have been provided such as shutting off traffic entirely to cars and the creation of a pedestrian mall towards the south end of the main thoroughfare. This had its pros and cons and was recently removed to mitigate traffic congestion that was exacerbated by the many detours required.

Our discussions with insiders has yielded many insights into how the town wishes to deal with this problem from 2026 onward.​

Resident e-Bike Rebate Program

One innovative solution is to encourage town residents to leave their cars at home and commute by e-Bikes to and from work. This would leave more space for tourists and reduce overall traffic congestion. Banff is now implementing an incentive program that allows residents to earn a $500 rebate on the purchase of an e-bike that will be used within the city.

Shuttle Services

Another solution could be to add additional parking capacity along the entranceways to Banff and then utilize shuttle services to bring guests into town where most of their time will be spent walking. This will minimize the need for medium-term parking in town and reduce congestion.

Private e-Bike Rentals

With such a parking arrangement, companies like ReeBike could offer parking lot pick-up points where tourists can reserve e-Bikes in advance and have immediate access to app-controlled medium-term rentals for durations of 2 - 24 hours, and 1-3 days. With their lockable capability, these hybrid-use e-bikes allow riders to tour around town, park their bikes at designated zones, visit shops and restaurants, and not worry about watching the minute-meter.

This concept would provide the convenience of speedy commuting around town, the ability to switch to pedestrian mode at will, and guaranteed access to their rental upon return to the e-bike. ​This method provides the convenience afforded the traditional car and park method, but it drastically reduces the total space required in town to accommodate the same number of tourists. Plus, at the end of the day, riders simply return to the entrance-way parking lot to drop off the e-bike and pick up their vehicle at the edge of town.

We would even offer free battery swap re-fueling service should the charge run low during the day. Several charge-point stations throughout the city will allow participating merchants to provide charging stations that can entice additional sales as riders come in to swap out the battery.

These are just a few ideas being floated around town with more to come. Other tourist areas like Canmore and Lake Louise have similar issues the can also be resolved with innovative e-Bike solutions like ours.

Conclusion

2026 is projected to be a transformative year for Banff city council as they struggle to find ideal solutions to the over-tourism and traffic congestion problems. We feel we can be part of the solution.