BC Business
Traffic Pattern Changed Olympic spectators may find themselves in a competition of their own once the games start: getting to the venues. With road closures, parking restrictions and about 150,000 more people using transit, it’s not going to be easy
The Olympic Line
A modern take on an old classic, the Olympic Line has streetcars shuttling people between Granville Island and the Cambie Bridge. The ride is free, but the trains–which are on loan to Vancouver from Brussels, Belgium–are only schedul
More Streetcars to Come? Mayor Robertson expressed his eagerness to bring streetcars to Vancouver at the Olympic Line launch. The Downtown Streetcar Project, which got its start in 1999 when Council approved a concept plan for a downtown streetcar system
Old Street Cars Only meters from the refurbished tracks sits a reminder of what once was. Vancouver used to have an extensive streetcar network which first began in 1890. But like many North American cities, those lines were ripped up in favour of buses
Security Restricts Ferries
A ferry ride on False Creek would be a great way to see the Olympic village and surrounding pavilions, but unfortunately this area is restricted for security reasons during the Olympics. Although commercial traffic will not
Water Taxis Still Popular With 45,000 people a day expected to visit Granville Island, over double that of an average summer weekend day, the water taxis of False Creek will still be bustling. Aquabus, a company that has been running since 1979, is intro
Cycling Routes
TransLink has been encouraging people to get on their bikes to go to the games. They’ve produced a handy revised cycling map showing which of the 400 kilometres worth of bikes routes have been affected (since a number of them are). B
Tight Paths
But while TransLink is encouraging bicycle use–they converted four kilometres of the city’s downtown streets to pedestrian and bike corridors–the diverted routes aren’t all welcoming. The detour around the Olympic Village to Scien
The Canada Line
The premier transit option of the Winter Games, The Canada Line will usher hundreds of thousands of people from the airport and Richmond to downtown Vancouver. At a cost of $1.9 billion dollars, the 12-mile long line was one of the la
Ian Bickis is a freelance journalist based in Vancouver, B.C. He has worked with a variety of media outlets, including CBC Radio and Television, PBS Frontline World, and the Globe and Mail. He specializes in business, environmental, and political reporting, and works in a variety of mediums.