“Please, allow me to show you my bus that I drive for G7,” says the driver.
Willi Mair makes his way around the side of the coach, a late-model Canadian-made Prevost. It’s branded with the name of the company, Sunshine Coach, and painted with three slices of sunset red and golden yellow.
He steps up the entrance of the bus and leans into the driver’s area. The coach has all of the conveniences, Mair notes — he can lower the front for older people to come on board. It’s got seatbelts, for safety. There’s a washroom in the back.
“And it is, of course … air conditioned,” he concludes, proudly.
Just a few days ago, Mair’s bus was full of RCMP officers, heading to the G7 summit. They weren’t in uniform, but they came carrying heavy bags. Mair, who likes to help passengers load their luggage, was surprised at their weight.
“I was afraid I would pull the handle off just by lifting,” he said.
But the officers were very nice. Casual.
“And going to work, I guess.”
Tuesday was the first day a controlled access zone came into effect in the Kananaskis region in advance of the G7 summit, a gathering of leaders from seven of the world’s advanced economies. The summit has brought a significantly heightened police and military presence to this area.
Here’s what the new Kananaskis G7 security perimeter looks like
Now that the zone has come into effect, Mair is only driving security officials and staff from the Calgary International Airport as far as the Stoney Nakoda Resort and Casino, a little more than 25 kilometres from the summit site.
White tents at the casino play host to vehicle screening and act as a passenger switch-over point. Screened vehicles are escorted into the controlled access zone. Other passengers are moved in on pre-cleared buses.
“It is a big hoopla, for sure,” Mair said. “But, it has to be this way.”
The Bearspaw Kananaskis Travel Centre sits in the next parking lot over from the Stoney Nakoda Resort and Casino. Ellaina Benjamin is working the front counter.
Being situated right outside the road that takes delegates to the controlled access zone means these employees are seeing a lot — army helicopters, jets, and police from across the country.
“I kind of find it amusing, entertaining to see. It’s something different, for sure. I got nosy yesterday and I was asking where their jurisdictions are from,” Benjamin said.
Security for the event is being run by an integrated group that includes the RCMP, the Calgary Police Service, Alberta sheriffs, Alberta conservation officers and the Canadian Armed Forces, as well as other police services from across the country, including Edmonton, Winnipeg, and the Tsuut’ina Nation Police Service.
These forces are tasked with handling what officials have referred to as the “largest domestic security operation” a country can take on, with more advanced technological threats, including drones.
Other threats are those outdoorsy Albertans may be more familiar with.
Some of them come into view on a trip up the road to the controlled access zone. A sign on the side of the road advises motorists that the fire danger rating for Banff National Park is now classified as “Extreme.” Near a blockade close to the summit site, a bear is seen scampering into the dense treeline.
Officials have said they’re working to minimize the wildlife-human contact. In 2002, the last time the leaders’ summit was held in Kananaskis, a bear was tranquilized and later killed after it came too close to the leaders’ site.
Near the Wasootch Ridge Trailhead, police vehicles wave motorists over, asking them to roll down their windows. From here, accreditation is mandatory for anyone who wants into the controlled access zone.
The region will stay this way, locked down, until June 18. For those locals who have come to view Kananaskis as a retreat from daily life, the disruption can’t end soon enough.
The Galatea day use area, Mount Lorette Ponds, and Little Lougheed Trail are among several recreational zones off-limits until the summit wraps up.
“It’s closed all my favourite spots,” said Nalyn Hill, who visits the area from Calgary almost every weekend with her dog. “I like to take him to Mount Lorette Ponds, especially … everything was blocked off. So, it’s very frustrating.”
Though leaders will be situated within Kananaskis Village itself, the disruption isn’t just being felt around the Kananaskis region. Calgary, Banff, and the surrounding area is playing host to media and support teams from around the world.
In Banff, international media will gather at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. Preparation was in full-swing on Tuesday, with crews checking technology and setting up stations for journalists to deliver their live reports.
Soon, leaders will arrive at Kananaskis Village, the international media centre will be bustling with activity, and the nearby site at the Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre will be open for those looking to protest.
Janice Hagel, who was taking a break from a bicycle ride outside the recreation centre on Tuesday, said she thinks the security measures are necessary given the scale of the event.
But she adds she’ll be watching the outcomes of the summit closely.
“I’m interested in what they’ll be talking about,” she said. “And not only that, but what they’ll be acting on.”
