17 Avenue SE (Calgary)

Aerial view of Chestermere Lake with the Chestermere Boulevard crossing and interchange with the Trans-Canada Highway.

The west end of 17 Avenue SE begins with a small segment at a 5-way intersection with 9 Avenue SE and 15 Street SE (due to traffic calming, access to northbound 15 Street SE is closed), crossing the Canadian Pacific Railway, and ending at 17A Street SE. It begins again just to the south at the Blackfoot Trail / 19 Street SE intersection and crosses the Bow River via the Cushing Bridge before intersecting Deerfoot Trail (Highway 2). Prior to the construction of Blackfoot Trail, 17 Avenue SE was a continuous roadway and the section between 19 Street SE and Deerfoot Trail is now generally referred to as part of Blackfoot Trail. 19 Street SE serves as the main access between 9 Avenue SE and Blackfoot Trail / 17 Avenue SE.

East of Deerfoot Trail, 17 Avenue SE leaves the Bow River valley and intersects Barlow Trail, though it is only accessible for westbound traffic. It passes through the communities of Albert Park/Radisson Heights, Southview, and Forest Lawn, and continues east past Elliston Park before intersecting Stoney Trail. It transitions into rural farmland and at 116 Street SE (also known as Range Road 284 or Conrich Road), enters into the city of Chestermere, where it becomes Chestermere Boulevard. It ends at the Highway 1 (Trans-Canada Highway) interchange, where it continues east as Range Road 243.

17 Avenue SE is the original alignment of Highway 1 through eastern Calgary. In 1949, Highway 1 was rerouted to follow 16 Avenue N, bypassing downtown Calgary and Forest Lawn, and 17 Avenue SE designated as Highway 1A. The section of Highway 1A west of Deerfoot Trail was dropped in the 1970s, resulting in Highway 1A being a short alternate route into Calgary and its southeast industrial parks. In 1993, the International Avenue BRZ was established resulting in 17 Avenue SE being nicknamed as International Avenue.[3] In 2007, the City of Calgary annexed land from Rocky View County up to Range Road 284 (now 116 Street SE);[4] while in 2009, Chestermere annexed land up to the Calgary city limit,[5] resulting in Highway 1A no longer travelling through a rural municipality and signaling a possible end to the Highway 1A designation. In 2013, the province of Alberta decommissioned Highway 1A,[6] and as of 2016, remnant Highway 1A signage still remains on Deerfoot Trail and sections of 17 Avenue SE within Calgary; however, it has been removed along Stoney Trail, through Chestermere, and along the Trans-Canada Highway.

17 Ave Transitway at 33 St SE

The City of Calgary opened a 5-kilometre (3 mi) long dedicated bus-only transitway on November 19, 2018 as part of the city's MAX BRT network.[7] The transitway, which carries MAX Purple, begins to the south of 17 Avenue SE at the intersection 9 Avenue SE and 16 Street SE, and travels parallel to Blackfoot Trail and 17 Avenue SE, crossing the Bow River and Deerfoot Trail on its own dedicated bridges. At 28 Street SE, the transitway shifts to the centre of 17 Avenue SE and travels east before ending just west of Hubalta Road. Long-term plans call for the mixed-use corridor and transitway to extend east into Chestermere.[8][9]

Construction began in 2017 and was divided into two phases – both of which were constructed simultaneously. Phase 1 focused on the dedicated bus-only transitway on 17 Avenue SE between 28 Street SE and Hubalta Road SE, which included the construction of BRT station platforms and a complete transformation of International Avenue infrastructure.[10][11] Phase 2 focused on the construction of a transit and pedestrian only bridge crossing Deerfoot Trail, connecting 28 Street SE to 9 Avenue SE.[10][11]

From west to east.[2]

Location	km[1]	mi	Destinations	Notes
Calgary	0.0	0.0	9 Avenue SE / 15 Street SE
	0.5	0.31	Blackfoot Trail / 17A Street SE / 19 Street SE	Blackfoot Trail concurrency begins; through traffic follows Blackfoot Trail
	0.9	0.56	Cushing Bridge across the Bow River
	1.5	0.93	Deerfoot Trail (Hwy 2)	Partial cloverleaf interchange; Hwy 2 exit 254; Blackfoot Trail concurrency ends
	2.1	1.3	Barlow Trail / 26 Street SE	No eastbound exit to Barlow Trail
	2.2	1.4	28 Street SE	MP  28 Street SE station (located south of 17 Ave SE)
			17 Avenue Transitway	Transitway enters median (continues west on the south side of 17 Ave SE)
	2.7	1.7	Radisson Drive / 33 Street SE	MP  33 Street SE station (located in median)
	3.1	1.9	36 Street SE	MP  36 Street SE station (located in median)
	3.9	2.4	44 Street SE	MP  44 Street SE station (located in median)
	4.7	2.9	52 Street SE	MP  52 Street SE station (located in median)
	5.1	3.2	17 Avenue Transitway	East end of transitway
	5.2	3.2	Hubalta Road
	6.4	4.0	68 Street SE	Access to Elliston Park
	7.3	4.5	Stoney Trail (Hwy 201)	Partial cloverleaf interchange; Hwy 201 exit 81
	7.9	4.9	84 Street SE south
	8.2	5.1	84 Street SE north
Calgary–Chestermere city line	11.2	7.0	116 Street SE / Range Road 284	East end of 17 Avenue SE • West end Chestermere Boulevard
Chestermere	12.8	8.0	Rainbow Road
	14.7	9.1	Windermere Drive / West Chestermere Drive
	15.0	9.3	Crosses Chestermere Lake
	15.3	9.5	Cove Drive / East Chestermere Drive
	15.5	9.6	Hwy 1 (TCH) – Calgary (16 Avenue N), Medicine Hat	Partial cloverleaf interchange
			Range Road 243
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus       HOV only       Incomplete access       Route transition

• Transportation in Calgary

• Main Streets - Planning the future of Calgary's thriving main streets
• International Avenue Business Revitalization Zone