mr.x
May 25th, 2007, 01:51 AM
SkyTrain on track for 24-hour service during Games
Non-stop bus service, making all rides free still being considered
Damian Inwood, The Province
Published: Thursday, May 24, 2007
SkyTrain will likely run a round-the-clock service during the 2010 Olympics, says CEO Doug Kelsey.
And transit officials said yesterday a decision will be made by year-end on whether buses will run non-stop during the 17-day Games and whether all transit will be free.
"During the Olympic Games, the hopeful goal is to run SkyTrain 24/7," Kelsey said in a meeting with The Province editorial board.
Kelsey also said that a "world-first" translation system, in 150 languages, will kick off next week on SkyTrain as part of the buildup to 2010.
"One of the challenges is the language issue," said Kelsey, who also chairs the Vancouver 2010 transportation committee.
"We're going to offer a 150-language interpretation service on SkyTrain."
He said foreign SkyTrain passengers will be able to ask an attendant for help and ask questions on a station telephone in their own language.
"We're doing it with the Provincial Language Service and it costs us $2 a minute," said Kelsey.
He said the cost, which he doesn't expect to be large, will be paid for by such things as retail rents.
During the 2010 Games, people holding event tickets will be able to ride transit for free, said Kelsey.
He said a decision on a system-wide free service during 2010 has yet to be made.
"In Italy [at the Turin 2006 Winter Games], they were supposed to charge but they never did," he said. "Part of the problem was enforceability."
TransLink spokesman Ken Hardie said that free transit for 2010 "is a target of ours."
And he said that 24-hour buses would be needed in some areas if Vancouver 2010 copies the Turin Olympics idea of holding "White Nights," where the town is going 24 hours a day.
"I know that the experience in Torino was that people had long walks back to their hotels because transit shut down," said Hardie.
He said that TransLink is now expanding its bus fleet and replacing older buses.
"We're bringing in 380 buses this year," he said. "Some of them will be expansion and some replacement. As we get closer to the Olympics, we'll be retaining some of the buses that would otherwise be retired, just to bulk up for the time we'll need extra capacity."
dinwood@png.canwest.com
© The Vancouver Province 2007
Non-stop bus service, making all rides free still being considered
Damian Inwood, The Province
Published: Thursday, May 24, 2007
SkyTrain will likely run a round-the-clock service during the 2010 Olympics, says CEO Doug Kelsey.
And transit officials said yesterday a decision will be made by year-end on whether buses will run non-stop during the 17-day Games and whether all transit will be free.
"During the Olympic Games, the hopeful goal is to run SkyTrain 24/7," Kelsey said in a meeting with The Province editorial board.
Kelsey also said that a "world-first" translation system, in 150 languages, will kick off next week on SkyTrain as part of the buildup to 2010.
"One of the challenges is the language issue," said Kelsey, who also chairs the Vancouver 2010 transportation committee.
"We're going to offer a 150-language interpretation service on SkyTrain."
He said foreign SkyTrain passengers will be able to ask an attendant for help and ask questions on a station telephone in their own language.
"We're doing it with the Provincial Language Service and it costs us $2 a minute," said Kelsey.
He said the cost, which he doesn't expect to be large, will be paid for by such things as retail rents.
During the 2010 Games, people holding event tickets will be able to ride transit for free, said Kelsey.
He said a decision on a system-wide free service during 2010 has yet to be made.
"In Italy [at the Turin 2006 Winter Games], they were supposed to charge but they never did," he said. "Part of the problem was enforceability."
TransLink spokesman Ken Hardie said that free transit for 2010 "is a target of ours."
And he said that 24-hour buses would be needed in some areas if Vancouver 2010 copies the Turin Olympics idea of holding "White Nights," where the town is going 24 hours a day.
"I know that the experience in Torino was that people had long walks back to their hotels because transit shut down," said Hardie.
He said that TransLink is now expanding its bus fleet and replacing older buses.
"We're bringing in 380 buses this year," he said. "Some of them will be expansion and some replacement. As we get closer to the Olympics, we'll be retaining some of the buses that would otherwise be retired, just to bulk up for the time we'll need extra capacity."
dinwood@png.canwest.com
© The Vancouver Province 2007