Included in the Vancouver 2010 mini-bid book to be submitted to the International Olympic Committee at the end of May will be a proposal that athletes will be ferried on helicopters so they can get from Whistler events to Vancouver in time for the evening medal presentations.
Pique News Magazine reports that Dena Coward, manager of transportation for the 2010 Vancouver Winter Games told residents at an Olympic InfoZone meeting last week that “we have to submit a plan with what we know exists”.
The group also heard that 43,000 people will have to make their way up the Sea to Sky Corridor during the Games, should Vancouver win the bid. The total number of people is based on the following estimates during peak time (roughly 60 per cent of the time) reports Pique. There will be 30,000 spectators, 6,000 volunteers, 700 media, 1,200 sponsors, 100 VIP’s, and 5,000 day skiers. The biggest group must be loaded within a three-hour period.
Coward said, “that still means there will be people leaving Vancouver at four in the morning potentially, so it could get ugly”.
Coward added that to accommodate these numbers, Highway 99 must expand to three lanes of traffic, with two lanes heading northbound and one southbound.
But Coward said in addition to the expanded highway, the transportation committee has also come up with a multi-mode solution, including travelling via bus, train, board and helicopter. “We’re trying to be flexible. If a road closes down, we have rail and marine”.
Pique reports that about 1,500 buses will be needed to move spectators and volunteers from Vancouver and Squamish to Whistler. About 400 buses would be arriving and departing Whistler on peak days.
Also, about 20 to 30 high-speed passenger-only ferries will ship people from Vancouver and Squamish. From Squamish these passengers will then make their way to Whistler via bus or rail.
The rail transit will be made up of roughly 50 bi-level commuter cars, similar to the West Coast Express rail cars, to take passengers from Squamish to Whistler.
“Private vehicles in the corridor will be restricted to residents through a permit system”, said Coward.
She said the details of that system have yet to be worked out by the RCMP.
Even ticket-holders coming up from Vancouver will be required to take some form of public transportation. Each event ticket will include a ticket for transportation.
