Cost of Canadian 2010 Winter escalate Olympics

A construction boom in western Canada has sharply pushed up the cost of preparations for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, forcing organisers to ask for a 23 per cent increase in financial support from federal and provincial governments.

The organising committee said on Friday that it now estimated the construction budget at C$580m ($505m), up from its 2002 estimate of C$470m. Some of the Olympic venues are located in Vancouver and others in the ski resort of Whistler, a two-and-a-half hour drive to the north.
The amounts exclude infrastructure improvements, such as a new subway line to Vancouver airport and widening the highway between Vancouver and Whistler.

According to the Olympics committee, the budget overrun has been contained by C$85m in belt-tightening measures. Some venues have been redesigned, and the media broadcast centre has been shifted to a cheaper location.

Critics of the Vancouver bid contend that the extra costs should be borne by private businesses that will benefit from the Games, not by taxpayers. Mr Furlong said that “we are determined not to return to the taxpayers of Canada for additional public funds to complete the venue programme”.