Travel smart by knowing before you go, planning ahead and preparing for “life as unusual” during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games

First phase of Games-time integrated transportation plan released

Vancouver, BC – Travelling smart by “knowing before you go” and preparing for “life as unusual” by residents, businesses and spectators alike will be the key to a successful transportation experience in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland and Sea to Sky region during the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. The Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) shared this transportation advice today as part of the release of the first phase of the integrated transportation plan for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games by the Olympic and Paralympic Transportation Team (OPTT). 

The plan is based on the need to transport athletes, officials and all Games participants safely, reliably and efficiently throughout the Host Region, while also taking into consideration the transportation needs of  local residents, businesses and visitors. The local road network capacity to downtown Vancouver will need to be reduced by 20 per cent. Additionally, parking in Whistler will be limited. Comparable to past Host Cities, a minimum 30 per cent reduction in vehicle traffic into downtown Vancouver, on bridges crossing the Burrard Inlet, on the Sea to Sky Highway and in Whistler will need to be achieved.  

Given these requirements, public transit in all key areas will be significantly increased to ensure easy and convenient travel options and walking and cycling will be encouraged. Public transit in Vancouver will be considerably expanded throughout the region, and in Whistler and the Sea to Sky corridor, transit service will more than triple during the Olympic Winter Games period.

Travel smart and know before you go

All travellers — from residents to spectators — have a role to play in helping to deliver a successful travel experience during the Games, by making informed transportation choices before they travel to downtown Vancouver, Whistler and within the Sea to Sky corridor. During the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the public are advised to:

• Leave vehicles at home; rely on travelling by public transit in Vancouver and Whistler. VANOC’s Olympic bus network will serve the mountain venues, and day skiers and visitors to Whistler should arrange transport through private motor coach. Olympic lanes will be temporarily designated for specially permitted vehicles to ensure athletes, officials and key Games personnel can travel to and from venues. Public transit vehicles will also have access to these faster lanes.

• Where feasible, consider walking or cycling.

• Rideshare or carpool if driving is absolutely necessary and remember there will be no parking at Games venues and public parking will be significantly reduced in Whistler.

• Allow more travel time as no matter the mode of travel, it will take longer to reach the destination.

• Travel smartand know before you go — plenty of general and specific travel information will be available. Detailed, real-time transportation updates during Games time will be made broadly available to the public by all transportation providers.

More public transit service

• TransLink will provide a significant increase in transit capacity throughout Metro Vancouver, most of it permanent.

*Permanent enhancements include:

• the new Canada Line rapid transit service
• a third SeaBus (50 per cent capacity increase)

• 48 new SkyTrain cars (30 per cent capacity increase)

• 85 additional buses coming on stream, joining the 115 recently added to the fleet

Temporary Games-time enhancements include:

• West Coast Express will add six additional trips on weekdays, nine more on Saturdays and seven on Sundays (80 per cent capacity increase)
• 180 additional buses and 30 more HandyDART vehicles will operate in Metro Vancouver (an approximately 10 per cent increase in peak capacity)
• the SkyTrain Expo and Millennium lines and SeaBus will operate more frequently and with extended hours, with the last trip leaving downtown Vancouver at approximately 2:15 am

• BC Transit’s fleet in Whistler, Squamish and Pemberton will more than triple from 39 to 135 buses at Games time. There will be more than five times the existing service hours, with expanded routes in Whistler and connector buses linking Squamish and Pemberton running around the clock, seven days a week.

Prepare for life as unusual

Welcoming thousands of visitors, athletes and officials from countries around the world means life in the Lower Mainland and Sea to Sky region will be different in February 2010. The transportation plan will help residents and visitors embrace the adventure, adapt their daily routine and take in sports events, cultural events and free entertainment at Celebration Sites in downtown Vancouver, Richmond, West Vancouver and Whistler.

• Transportation plans will allow for businesses in Vancouver and Whistler to remain open and residents to access their homes during Games time.

• Pedestrian traffic in downtown Vancouver and Whistler Village will increase substantially, especially in pedestrian corridors which will be created by re-designating selected roadways.

• Current traffic and parking restrictions will be extended to 24 hours a day, seven days a week in key downtown Vancouver areas.

Where and when to get more Vancouver 2010 transportation information

Detailed information, including maps and a fact sheet, is now available at www.vancouver2010.com and will be updated as new information becomes available. Questions on the transportation plan will be answered most quickly by sending an e-mail to info@vancouver2010.com. Messages left at VANOC’s Operations Engagement phone line at 604.403.2309 will be returned as soon as possible.

Detailed transportation information will be made widely available in fall 2009 as residents and visitors to the Games Host Region begin to determine their more detailed travel plans.

Background on the transportation plan and the OPTT

Early on, the OPTT set a goal of designing a plan that:

• ensures safe, reliable accessible travel

• takes into account everyone’s travel needs

• makes the best use of existing transportation networks

• reduces vehicle traffic

• creates legacies of sustainable transportation choices

The plan expands on details released in the City of Vancouver’s Host City Transportation Concept Plan unveiled last November and provides the first overall picture of how transportation will work in the Games region. Approximately 80 per cent of the transportation planning is complete. The next update, including specific routing and the Paralympic Winter Games transportation plan, is expected this summer. 

Members of the OPTT are VANOC, the City of Vancouver, Resort Municipality of Whistler, TransLink, BC Transit, the provincial Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, and the Vancouver 2010 Integrated Security Unit. Planning is also supported by other partners, including Transport Canada and the municipalities of Richmond and West Vancouver. Over the next few months, detailed planning will continue, including fine-tuning plans in the Lower Mainland and Sea to Sky corridor.

About VANOC
VANOC is responsible for the planning, organizing, financing and staging of the XXI Olympic Winter Games and the X Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. The 2010 Olympic Winter Games will be staged in Vancouver and Whistler from February 12 to 28, 2010. Vancouver and Whistler will host the Paralympic Winter Games from March 12 to 21, 2010. Visit www.vancouver2010.com for more information.

Contact
VANOC Communications
mediarelations@vancouver2010.com