Edmonton Transit Service Millgate Transit Centre

Opened	September 1, 1985
Closed	September 3, 2022
Location	86 St/ Whitemud Drive
LRT Lines Served	None
Platform	Center island extra bays on 86 St
Passenger Access	N/A
Park and Ride	No
1988

Millgate Transit Centre for many years was the gateway to the rest of the City from Mill Woods for transit users. Opened on September 1, 1985, for about 1 year prior, Edmonton Transit had designed Millbourne Road and 86 St as a Major Transfer Point. Millgate was located just down the road from transit point, on the North side of Whitemud Drive. Millgate had a rather unique location. There was nothing near by! It was bordered to the South by the Whitemud Drive (no on or off ramps at 86 St), to the West were some office buildings, to the north an armory (now the Provincial Archives), and towards the East at 75 St are the EPCOR water tanks. There were no shopping centres, or other transit destinations near by. This remote location also meant that the transit centre was never connected to the water or sewer systems, and so it was not uncommon during midday find a bus bay taken up by a truck attending to either one of those needs. Despite the barren location, Millgate was well positioned on a major transit artery with already established transit routes, with a number of routes heading towards Downtown, including peak hour express extensions for a number of routes that would otherwise go no where near Millgate, as well as routes to Southgate and the University, and later on with the arrival of the 33, West Edmonton Mall. As residential areas expanded towards 34 St, Millgate became increasingly busier as more bus routes were added. The opening of the Meadows Transit Centre didn't really provide any relief, in fact it increased the need for space at Millgate as now the 33 needed a Westbound and Eastbound bay.

The shelter structure itself is one of 3 built to the same basic design, the others being West Jasper Place/ West Edmonton Mall and Northgate. Millgate was the last one of these to serve riders. The transit centre featured 10 bays within the main terminal loop, as well as 2 on street stops that doubled as Kiss N Ride drop zones. The on street stops were generally used by the peak hour express extensions for routes that otherwise wouldn't use Millgate, like the 64 and 65, as well as a School Specials. The one exception would be the 33 as when that route reached Millgate there were no bays available for it.
Over the years Millgate saw a few modifications. Some modifications were made to increase the length of an existing bay on each side to allow for artics to use the transit centre for the route 8 as well as widening the platform near the shelter structure for easier wheelchair access. With the increasing number of bus routes by the 2010's, in 2011 the passenger platform was extended right to 86 St to squeeze 1 more bay on each side for a total of 12 bays, additionally these 2 extra bays were suitable for artics.
With the go ahead for the Valley Line Southeast LRT, the writing was on the wall for Millgate, which would be replaced by the Davies Station.
However, due to TransEd running years behind on the VLSE construction, Millgate had a reprieve. By this time the transit centre, and in particular the concrete was starting to show it's age and one edge was slumping down towards Whitemud Drive! This reprieve did mean that Millgate entered the BNR era on April 25, 2021. With the BNR Millgate felt like a shadow of it's former self. The multitude of express buses was now replaced by the 510x Valley Line precursor service. There was no more local bus to Downtown, like the 8 under Horizon 2000, the 81 was now the 501 and routed to Capilano, no more West Edmonton Mall bus. Indeed, a lot of routes were now Vicinity's. Millgate was no longer one of the focal points for Mill Woods routes.
With work sufficiently complete on the Davies Station to allow the bus terminal to open, ETS closed Millgate on September 3, 2022, shifting all routes to Davies for September 4, 2022.
This would not be the end for Millgate. After demolition of the shelter building and stabilization of the slumping slope, the transit centre was turned into a recycling centre with the addition of bins for residents to drop off their recyclable materials.

Looking Southwest. You can get a feel for how empty the area was. 2001	The "Flying E" at night.	Work to lengthen bus bays to support artics, and make wheelchair access easier next to the shelter structure. October 29, 2003	If I recall, the "Flying E" was being replaced.	Now with the "Flying E" replaced.
Millgate under the BNR. All bays now have letters assigned. October 5, 2021	Northbound bay on 86 St with the kiss'n ride zone signage. October 5, 2021	Southbound by on 86 St. This is a unique shelter, with it being the only one in the City with that roof. October 5, 2021	Southbound by on 86 St. This is a unique shelter, with it being the only one in the City with that roof. October 5, 2021	A no turn except transit sign, complete with the "Flying E" into the BNR era. October 5, 2021
The BNR era brought On Demand to Millgate, although it was generally a rare sight. May 18, 2022	The Valley Line 510x precursor service is now the only way to get Downtown from Millgate. It would later be replaced by the 73 which ran via Davies. May 18, 2022	While not exactly a rare vehicle at Millgate, they weren't as common as before the BNR. The 502 was most commonly a Vicinity route, but this one block did get 40' buses. Today, the 502 is almost entirely a 40' route. May 18, 2022	Millgate busway not looking too happy. May 18, 2022	It's only a few days until Davies opens, and we have a XD60 posed next to the "Flying E" that still exists, having been carefully painted around over the years. September 1, 2022
Looking to the west. Signage is up announcing the upcoming closure of Millgate. September 1, 2022	Looking Northeast across Whitemud Drive. September 2, 2022	Looking Northeast across Whitemud Drive. September 2, 2022	Looking East. That crocked sign always annoyed me! September 2, 2022	Looking east from 86 St. September 2, 2022
The slumping down towards Whitemud Drive has gotten worse. September 2, 2002