Calgary is days away from Stage 4 water restrictions that will stretch across roughly four weeks while crews complete final connections on the new Bearspaw South feeder main.
The limits take effect Wednesday and will remain in force through the 113th Grey Cup on Nov. 15 and the surrounding Cenovus Energy 2026 Grey Cup Festival (Nov. 11–15).
The work centres on linking the new pipeline into the city’s existing network—one of the last major steps before the project wraps up.
In addition to the connection itself, crews must rebuild roads and sidewalks over the new pipe and replace six sections of the 1,500-millimetre feeder main along Parkdale Boulevard and Memorial Drive.
Once the restrictions begin, all outdoor water use is banned, including the flooding of outdoor rinks. Residents and businesses are also asked to cut indoor consumption. Practical steps include running washing machines and dishwashers only when full, flushing toilets only when necessary, and keeping showers to about three minutes.
The same expectations apply beyond Calgary’s borders to Airdrie, Chestermere, Strathmore and Tsuut’ina Nation. City officials say daily demand must stay under 500 million litres to protect reliable service, maintain firefighting capacity and keep the system stable.
Mayor Jeromy Farkas noted that the Bearspaw South feeder main repairs have been underway for nearly 11 months and are nearing completion. He called the progress “an extraordinary achievement” driven by engineers, project managers and crews who have worked through difficult conditions.
At the same time, he cautioned that the finish line is still ahead.
“We’re not across the finish line yet, we have one final critical stretch ahead of us… We’re going to need Calgarians to come together one more time.” Acknowledging public fatigue after earlier restrictions and disruptions, he urged residents to “finish strong” over the next four weeks so the city can finally close this chapter of infrastructure work.
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