- by Rich Patterson (@pattersonbrands)

Even before the Olympics began I think most riders agreed the Canada Line was an unqualified success.  One Vancouverite decided that the new transit line deserved its own Pocket Guide to describe the rich experiences available on and around the Canada Line.  I sat down recently to ask author Noam Dolgin about his new book.

RP: Thanks for talking to me about your new transit pocket guide, Canada Line Adventures.  Tell me, why a pocket transit guide?

ND: The Canada Line Project has proven to be one of Vancouver’s most controversial Olympic related projects, yet it is immensely popular moving more than 100,000 residents and tourists daily.  This guide will provide people the resources to more fully access the many offerings of Vancouver and Richmond in an eco-friendly manner.  No matter where one fell in the debate, the line is now complete and provides immense opportunity for personal use and recreation.  Why not take advantage of all it has to offer?

RP: Explain to me how the guide works?

ND: For each station, readers will discover unique neighbourhood highlights, and a self-guided off-the-beaten-track adventure.  At each station, readers will find a restaurant, cafe, bar, entertainment venue, special point of interest, children’s activity, walking tour, heritage buildings, and a suggested picnic spot.  A beautifully designed map of each neighbourhood, directs users through the walking tour and neighbourhood offerings.

RP: Where is the guide available?

ND: The guide can be purchased at 3 Vets at 2200 Yukon Stand various convenience stores and cafes across the line.

RP: What was the highlight of researching this book?  What new things did you discover?

ND: Minoru Park blew my mind, the Chapel, waterfall, bunnies, and so much more in the centre of Richmond, I had no idea.  In my own neighbourhood, I discovered schoolhouse #472, an originally one room school now serving as someone’s backyard shed.  The guide is full of hidden treasures.

RP: What station is a must visit?

ND: Everyone should take the opportunity to explore the airport now that it’s so cheap and easy to get there.  Take in the art, the parks, the observation area, and the general hustle and bustle.  It’s wonderful being there when you don’t have a flight to run off to.

RP: Why you? Why now?

ND: Growing up along Cambie Street, near what is now King Edward Station, I spent a considerable part of my childhood walking, cycling and riding the bus through the neighbourhoods now served by Canada Line.

Author Noam Dolgin onboard Canada Line

My first haircut was on Cambie Street, as well as my first sleepover and first job.

As an environmental educator and advocate, the opening of the Canada Line provided a great opportunity to encourage eco-friendly travel and I was delighted to help promote everything my neighbourhood and the city had to offer.

Rich Patterson, has a twenty years experience in Public Relations, Marketing & Sales. Rich owns a successful Licensing, Apparel & Promotional Product company and is part owner of a social media consultancy based in Vancouver. Contact Rich at rich[at]pattersonbrands.com or follow twitter @pattersonbrands

On Sunday, I hopped on the Main bus to meet a friend downtown.  I love the Main bus. It meanders down my beloved Main Street neighborhood full of mom and pop businesses, wonderful clothes shops that showcase the best of Canadian fashion, and of course, some of my favorite restaurants. (I plan to do a photowalk later this week and will post shortly after.)

What made my trip even more enjoyable this time was the driver - a woman who smiled, chatted and went out of her way to be helpful. No matter who got on the bus - locals she recognized, a homeless person looking to get a free ride, or a young mother struggling to maneuver a stroller on board - she extended the same courtesy, with the same smile. She made everyone on the bus glad to be along for the ride.

One woman actually complimented the driver on her positive attitude as she was getting off at her stop.  The driver smiled and said, "I love my job!" That was definitely evident.

Translink, take note.  I don't know her name, but the driver of Main bus #2553 is a winner and a terrific ambassador for Vancouver. And she personifies what I hope will be our attitude toward each other during the Olympics - ever positive, ever helpful, and damn happy to be part of the fabric of this beautiful city.

Cathy Browne is a freelance PR and social media professional. She is @CathyBrowne on Twitter, and blogs at Cathy's Clean Slate.

By Cybele Negris

I was asked a few months ago by someone whether our office was shutting down for the Olympics.  I was surprised by the question.  In our business, we track every minute of phone calls and emails that come into our contact centre. We serve customers across Canada and globally. We couldn’t shut down for a day!

I started to wonder about businesses that could close down for a day, or for the entire Olympics for that matter, and what kind of business impact it might have. I started to think about why anyone would want to do that when we have hundreds of thousands of new people in the city to expose our businesses to? In upcoming posts I will discuss how local businesses are taking advantage of the Olympics. In the meantime, what the question did was get me thinking about how to maintain 100% productivity. 

There was a lot of talk about road closures, the inability for people to get to work or for deliveries to be completed. So I asked our office administrator Meryll to help us put a plan together to ensure that we have no down time and full productivity at Webnames.ca. She has graciously shared some of what she has found out below in hopes that it will help other businesses.

Getting To and From Work & Meetings

1. It's helpful to determine which transportation routes each employee takes to work ahead of time. There are road closures all over Vancouver and understanding where employees are located will make your research more targeted and effective.

2. Once you have determined everyone’s mode of transportation (eg. bus, seabus, skytrain, etc.), call TransLink and ask if the busses used by your employees are going to be re-routed. This information will help your staff plan alternate routes.

We asked about key dates and what procedures they (Translink) are taking during the Olympics to ensure that all passengers get to their destination in a timely manner.  We found out that bus detours will be in effect between Feb. 1-28. Extra busses to accommodate more passengers will be available Feb. 12-28 and there will be night busses on all major bus routes till 3:00 AM.  Seabus will be departing every 15 minutes during 6 – 10 AM and every 10 minutes during 10 AM to 12:30 AM. Skytrain will arrive every 108 seconds and the West Coast Express will add 8 more trains a day.

Here are a few helpful links for your planning:
Official TransLink Website and phone number: 604 953 3333
Translink Extended Services
Travel Smart 2010 Website
West Coast Express Olympic Schedule

3. All Olympic venue areas will have high traffic during scheduled events, so identify where all the venues are and avoid them during event times. Refer to the Olympic Venue Map as well as the Games Schedule to help plan.

4. Finding out where all road closures and Olympic lanes are can help avoid delays. Olympic lanes will have one lane of traffic transporting Olympic accredited vehicles only (media, athletes, etc.). Keep pedestrian only areas in mind and identify which places have parking and stopping restrictions as well. It is highly recommended that you don’t drive, especially in and around downtown. Make an effort to start work early and leave your home an hour before you typically would.

To establish where the road restrictions are, refer to the following pages on the City of Vancouver 's website: Venue Road Closures , Olympic Lanes, Pedestrian Only Corridors  and Parking Restrictions.

I also suggest that you visit and/or bookmark  the following TransLink pages so you can keep up to date with real time schedules and alerts:
Transit Alerts
Updates on delays, station closures and re-routing
Next Bus - Text messages the next bus arrival at your stop
Mobile transit schedules - Access bus schedules on your phone
Trip planner - Maps out your route and provides several options

Work from Home as a Backup Measure

For some staff it will not be easy to get into the office. At the very least, adjust work schedules as necessary. Prepare a contingency plan for each employee in the event they cannot get into work.

If you can, secure VPN connections for staff to work from home and ensure remote access to any important data and systems. Remember that staff will be using their home computers so make sure they have access to updated contact details like phone numbers and emails for co-workers, clients and suppliers.

Schedule conference calls or use web conferencing technology to meet rather than fight the traffic when you can. If staff are using their own phones, be prepared to reimburse for long-distance expenses, or make sure they have a Skype account set up and how to use it.

Deliveries to your Office

Contact all your suppliers and make sure that deliveries will proceed as scheduled. Ask about what steps they are taking to ensure all goods are delivered to your office in a timely manner. It will probably be best if supplies are ordered ahead of time. Keep in mind, if you have stopping or parking restriction around your area, it can be difficult to make deliveries around those zones. Here is more information relating to deliveries from the City of Vancouver.

Related Posts:

Bonnie Sainsbury’s Survival Guide to Transit in Vancouver

Marc Smith’s Tips & Tricks to getting around Vancouver during the 2010 Olympics

Follow Cybele on Twitter: www.twitter.com/cybelenegris
Digital Business card: http://cybele.tel

by @bsainsbury

Vancouver is not a particularly transit friendly city. We have a car culture. All that is going to change in February and March 2010, when 45,000 athletes, officials, media and volunteers travel to and from Olympic venues. Vehicular restrictions make using transit a necessity. Add those to regular commuters, new commuters, spectators getting to and from Olympic events and regular folk just trying to get around in their regular lives.

You’ll need to be prepared; know which buses/trains to take and where to transfer. Your computer and your iPod/iPhone will be your best tools. Translink does have a pocket map showing routes in the area. My head hurts when I try to read it and I’m familiar with the city and transit routes!

I use my computer to help me get around using transit. The most powerful tool is Google Maps. Yes, Google Maps provides transit information for most cities. I prefer this service to the Translink web page and it’s a common display for almost any city your in.

On the Google Maps home page, click on the Get Directions link (top left of your screen). a and b where are you starting from and where are you going. You need to use the city name in the address.

You can key in an exact address, the nearest intersection, the business name or the venue name. You’ll be given a list of destinations. Click on the one you want.

The next screen shows you the next three transit combinations that will get you to your destination. At this time, there’s no transit service to the oval, but closer to February, service will be established. The approximate travel time is also displayed.

Suppose you have to be at your destination for a certain time. Click on Show Options just under the start and destination fields. You’ll see that you can specify the departure or arrival time and date of your trip. Click on Get Directions and the display will reflect that date and time. The times are quite reliable, though I would err on the conservative side during peak hours.

You can magnify the map, to show you cross streets on your trip.

To display the return trip, click on the double arrow symbol to the right of the start and destination fields. You can change the arrival and departure times for the return trip.

You can print the directions, with or without the map.

Bonnie Sainsbury is a Social Media Strategist and Principal in Duet Media. She doesn’t own a private automobile, she used transit and car-coops to get around the city.