Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno is asking visitors to leave their cars at home this summer as the Canada Strong Pass returns, offering free entry to Banff National Park until September 7. With the park already seeing record-breaking numbers, the town wants people to plan a car-free trip to ease congestion and parking headaches.
The Canada Strong Pass, which started June 19, gives Canadians free admission to all Parks Canada sites, plus a 25% discount on camping fees. The program aims to make outdoor experiences more affordable, but it also adds pressure on a park that recorded 4.5 million visitors in 2025‑26 and a town that saw nearly 7 million vehicles at its two entrances last year alone. That vehicle count is a 4% jump over 2024 and 6.5% higher than pre‑pandemic levels.
Mayor DiManno called carfreebanff.ca the gold standard, pointing to the website’s trip‑planning tools that show how to reach Banff without a vehicle. By mid‑morning on nice days, every one of the town’s roughly 600 paid parking spots and 800 free stalls in the north commercial area is typically full. With downtown pay‑parking now at $12 an hour to encourage turnover, the message is clear: driving into Banff on a busy summer day is a gamble.
The town is leaning on Roam Public Transit, which carried a record 3 million riders in 2025, making it Alberta’s third‑busiest bus service. Money raised from parking fees—more than $6 million a year—goes straight into transit upgrades and climate‑resilience projects. About 70% of park visitors come from the Calgary and southern Alberta region for day trips, so officials see a real opportunity to shift those trips onto buses.
Traffic last year already ran 5.2% higher than 2017, the last time park passes were free for Canada’s 150th birthday. With the free-entry period running through September 7, the town is betting that a mix of better transit and straight‑forward advice can keep Banff welcoming for everyone.
