Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Plus 15 Network
The Plus 15 is a network of enclosed pedestrian bridges and second-floor walkways in downtown Calgary, named for bridges set roughly 15 feet above the roadway. The City of Calgary owns the bridges over public rights-of-way, while the walkways run through private buildings under public easements, and property owners maintain, secure and operate their links under development agreements and a 2021 Council policy.
Governance
Who owns it, who runs it, what the rules are.
- Owner
- The City of Calgary owns all 86 bridges over road, LRT and lane rights-of-way once construction is complete. The bridge connector between the property line and the façade is owned by the property owner, and the walkways inside buildings are private property protected by registered public easement areas.
- Operator
- Individual building owners and their property managers operate, clean, maintain and secure their links; the City of Calgary sets policy, inspects bridges, approves hour changes and closures, and manages the Plus 15 Fund.
- Hours
- Council policy sets standard hours of 6 a.m.–9 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m.–7 p.m. on weekends and statutory holidays. Links may open longer, and any shorter hours or closures require City approval, signage and a detour plan.[01]
- Public right
- Walkways and level access inside buildings are protected by public easement areas, giving the public a registered right of passage during operating hours rather than mere permission. Bridges over rights-of-way are City property. Permitted uses are limited to walking and mobility devices, and busking or commercial use needs City approval.
- Who pays
- Property owners maintain and renew their links, provide security, and fix defects found in City condition assessments at their own cost under the development agreement. The City runs five-year detailed condition assessments. The Plus 15 Fund, paid by developments seeking bonus density, funds missing links, accessibility, wayfinding, security, renewals and emergency repairs, with spending approved through the City budget.
Legal instruments
- Plus 15 Policy (Council policy, approved July 5, 2021) ↗Sets the Plus 15 boundary, ownership definitions, maintenance and security duties, standard hours, closure approval, permitted uses and the Plus 15 Fund. Replaced the 1984 +15 Policy.[01]
- Land Use Bylaw (Plus 15 bonus and Plus 15 Fund provisions; policy cites CR20 Part 13, Division 3) ↗Lets downtown developments exceed base density by building a Plus 15 bridge or paying into the Plus 15 Fund, calculated as typical bridge cost multiplied by site area over block area.[01]
- Plus 15 Development Agreement ↗Agreement signed at Development Permit stage for every new link, setting maintenance, bridge replacement, default remedies, third-party damage, and security monitoring and enforcement duties.[01]
- Public easement areas ↗Registered easements granting public access at street level and the Plus 15 level; all new developments in the Plus 15 boundary must provide them regardless of use.[01]
- Development Control Bylaw 8600 (1970) ↗Historic bylaw that first incorporated public areas on the Plus 15 level.[01]
Governing bodies
Open issues
- The 2024 Downtown Safety Leadership Table report called the network 'rife with safety issues' after hours and on weekends and recommended identifying sections for closure or dismantling.
- Engagement during policy development found inconsistent hours, poor wayfinding, social disorder and unclear operational responsibilities.
- Construction and lifecycle renovation work has closed several links for long periods, with at least one bridge not expected to reopen until January 2027.
- The City was running a public engagement study on the network in 2026, alongside a wayfinding improvement initiative.
Timeline
- Plus 15 concept introduced in the City Planning Department document 'The Future of Downtown Calgary'.[01]
- First Plus 15 bridge built, connecting the Westin Hotel to Calgary Place over 4th Avenue S.W.[01]
- Public areas on the Plus 15 level incorporated into the Development Control Bylaw (Bylaw 8600).[01]
- Interim policy replaces bonus options with a 'Plus 15 Must Area' and directs the City to obtain public easements through development.[01]
- Council adopts the +15 Policy, which supplemented the Land Use Bylaw and set the basis for development agreements on operations and maintenance.[01]
- Plus 15 Network Study completed after 2017–2019 public engagement, identifying missing links and improvements.[01]
- Council approves the Plus 15 Policy on July 5, replacing the 1984 policy and setting standard network-wide hours.[01]
- Downtown Safety Leadership Table report recommends reviewing the network and identifying sections suitable for closure or dismantling.[03]
The story
Calgary's Plus 15 network is a system of enclosed pedestrian bridges and second-floor walkways in the downtown core. Its name comes from the bridges standing approximately 15 feet above the roadway. City planners first set out the concept in a 1966 Planning Department report, 'The Future of Downtown Calgary', and the first bridge opened in 1969 between the Westin Hotel and Calgary Place over 4th Avenue S.W. City planner Harold Hanen championed the idea. The 1970 Development Control Bylaw then required public areas on the Plus 15 level.
The network grew through the oil-boom decades as developers traded bridges and public walkways for extra floor area. A 1975 interim policy created a 'Plus 15 Must Area' where minimum links were required regardless of bonus, and directed the City to obtain public easements through development. The 1984 +15 Policy formalised the planned network and the development agreements covering operations and maintenance. By 2021 the City counted 86 bridges and more than 16 kilometres of walkway, most of them climate-controlled.
Governance splits ownership by location. The City owns every bridge over a street, LRT line or lane once it is built. Property owners own the connectors inside their lot lines and the buildings the walkways cross, but registered public easement areas guarantee public passage. Under the 2021 Plus 15 Policy, owners carry routine maintenance, renewal and security, while the City inspects bridges, approves closures and hour changes, and limits use to walking and mobility devices.
Funding comes mostly from development. Under the Land Use Bylaw, projects inside the Plus 15 boundary that exceed base density must either build a bridge or contribute to the Plus 15 Fund. The contribution equals the cost of a typical bridge multiplied by the site's share of its block. The fund pays for missing links, accessibility, wayfinding, security infrastructure, renewals and emergency repairs. Council approves spending through the regular City budget process.
The network's future is debated. Engagement for the 2021 policy found inconsistent hours, weak wayfinding and social disorder, and the policy responded with uniform standard hours. In 2024 the Downtown Safety Leadership Table described the system as having serious safety issues after hours and recommended identifying sections for closure or dismantling to bring foot traffic back to the street. Construction and lifecycle renovation work has kept several links closed through 2026, with one bridge not due to reopen until 2027.
Questions people ask
Who owns Calgary's Plus 15 bridges?
What are the Plus 15 hours?
Why is it called the Plus 15?
Who pays to maintain the Plus 15?
Does the public have a legal right to walk through the buildings?
How long is the Plus 15?
Sources
- Plus 15 Policy — City of Calgary (2021)primary
- Plus 15 network — City of Calgary (2026)primary
- City of Calgary releases recommendations for a safer downtown — Global News (2024)
About this record
Confidence high · reviewed 2026-10-19. Core governance facts come straight from the 2021 Council-approved Plus 15 Policy. The policy and current City page say the first bridge was built in 1969, while many secondary sources say 1970; 1969 is used here. The exact Land Use Bylaw section is cited only as the policy gives it ('CR20 Part 13, Division 3'); a human should confirm the current section numbering in Land Use Bylaw 1P2007 and the current Plus 15 Fund rate per square metre. No dollar figures for bridge costs or fund balances were found. Whether standard hours are actively enforced against owners was not documented, so 'enforced' is null. The bbox is approximate from the downtown core. The Harold Hanen Vincent Massey Award claim appears in Wikipedia but was not verified and is omitted.
Map geometry: 405 corridor features, © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), as of 2026-10-20. Levels come from OpenStreetMap tags and can be incomplete.
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© 2026 Open Civic Intelligence Ventures LLC. Quote with attribution and a link; terms.