There are concerns whether construction of a 28 km high-tech rail link between Beijing’s airport and the city centre will be completed on time for the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympic Games. Other Olympics-related projects are on time or ahead of schedule and planners have little margin for error in the construction schedule, reports FT.com. An official of Beijing Dongzhimen Airport Express Rail said, “some people are worried about whether work will be completed on time. We are also worried”. Construction of the line is to be completed by the end of 2007 with test operations to start in April 2008 and a formal opening one month before the Games begin. Zhang Jianwei, chief country representative for the Montreal-based transport equipment company Bombardier responsible for the line’s core technology said such a short timetable for a project of this type is unprecedented. He called it “the biggest challenge” and said, “the schedule is very, very tight”.
The first test event of the Beijing 2008 Games kicks off Friday in Qingdao where the 2006 International Regatta will feature 466 sailors and 302 boards from 41 countries and regions. Eleven sailing events from nine categories are being held at the Qingdao International Sailing Centre, which covers 45 hectares on Fushan Bay. Security measures have reportedly been strengthened in and around key areas for the event. There will be more than 1,300 trained volunteers, some deployed in the competition area to provide services to athletes, officials and media, while others will work in more than 100 posts in transport hubs, tourist spots and other public areas across the city.
Volunteer recruitment for the Games will officially kick off on August 28. Beijing 2008 made the announcement at a mobilization meeting Friday. BOCOG’s on-line application system and toll-free hotline will be in operation when recruitment beings.
