VANOC representatives want Squamish-area residents who hold tickets to 2010 Winter Olympic events to know they have not abandoned you.
The beefed-up Sea to Sky corridor transit system in service next February will transport ticketed passengers to and from the venues, Irene Kerr, VANOC vice-president, services and transportation, said on Monday (March 16) during a 2010 transportation plan open house at the Westin Resort and Spa in Whistler.
"Our goal is to make sure it's available and accessible to all," Kerr said of the 135-bus system, which will be in service for the entire month of February.
However details such as schedules and pick-up and drop-off points within Squamish are still under development.
Kerr said that unlike the separate fleet of buses meant to transport ticketholders from Vancouver to the Whistler venues during the Games, the extra transit buses won't just be exclusively for ticketholders. They're also meant to serve commuters and others traveling along the corridor.
The buses will drop passengers within walking distance of the Creekside and Whistler Sliding Centre venues. Those headed to the sliding track will be encouraged to use the Excalibur Gondola from Whistler's Skiers Plaza to Blackcomb Base II, as did fans who attended recent World Cup events there.
Those headed to Whistler Olympic Park in the Callaghan Valley will be dropped off at a transit mall at the bottom of the Brandywine Forest Service Road and transfer to a VANOC bus for the nine-kilometre trek to the venue, Kerr said.
Last week, officials revealed limited parking will be available in Whistler, and Highway 99 motorists will be screened at a checkpoint -probably at the Alice Lake turnoff -and asked to show a driver's licence or other proof of residency in the corridor.
At Monday's open house, those representing the Games partners -VANOC, the Resort Municipality of Whistler, B.C. Transit, the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and the 2010 Integrated Security Unit - stressed the importance of getting people out of their cars and minimizing the amount of "background traffic" on highways.
To that end, one key will be locals' decision to make liberal use of the extra transit buses and five new routes within Whistler alone that will be available before and during the Games from Feb. 12 to 28.
Whistler municipal official Jan Jansen said that despite the planned dearth of day-long parking in Whistler, allowances are being made for short-term parking to accommodate pick-ups and drop-offs, grocery shopping, doctor visits and the like, he said.
Jansen said that further communications efforts this summer and fall - Phases 2 and 3 -will provide residents with details such as bus scheduling and Olympic venue permitting.
Jansen said while a handful of streets will be closed to regular vehicular traffic, and some turning restrictions will be in force during peak hours, efforts are being made to facilitate the delivery of business supplies, mostly after hours, within Whistler.
Kerr said the goal from the outset of planning had been to create something "that works for everyone,not just for Olympic clients, but for residents."
Those interviewed at the open house said they were disappointed details people need to plan their movements weren't available.
"I thought we'd get more details on permits and so on," said Steve Shadley, who lives in Nicklaus North. "I'm not enthused with the way the meeting was handled, because we already did have those details if we'd read the newspapers. But I understand that that's all the details they have now and that we'll get more in the future."
"I don't think there's anything in here that's a big surprise. We've known there were going to be restrictions for a long time," said Whistlerite Jim Watts.
