Olympic flame will be carried for 90 minutes through Charlottetown

http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=304684&sc=98

Olympic flame will be carried for 90 minutes
through Charlottetown

EDITORIAL STAFF
The Guardian

Alicia Flemming, left, Ross Hastie and Lauren Giroux, Glen Stewart School students, hold the Olympic torches they made to cheer on the Olympic flame Saturday as it arrives in Stratford. Guardian photo

The Birthplace of Confederation will be burning brightly Saturday as the Olympic torch will have plenty of time to shine in Charlottetown.
The flame will arrive in the city via the Hillsborough Bridge at about 5:20 p.m. The Olympic torch will be carried for the next 90 minutes or so through the streets of Charlottetown before arriving at around 7 p.m. in the Confederation Landing Park parking lot where a celebration with a host of entertainment will already be well underway, having started at about 5:45 p.m.
The flame will fly along Grafton Street, Edward Street, Kent Street, Kensington Road, Beasley Avenue, St. Peters Road, Belvedere Avenue, University Avenue, Euston Street, Brighton Road, Park Roadway, Richmond Street, and finally Great George Street to Confederation Landing for the party.
Organizers expect thousands to join in the celebration. Motorists are encouraged to use the parkades.

Free busing will be provided to and from the Olympic torch relay community celebration. Buses will be available at the following times and locations:
— Bus #1 at Souris IGA at 4:15 p.m., at St. Peters Park (at the causeway) at 4:45 p.m. and at Mount Stewart Irving at 5:10 p.m.
— Bus #2 at 4:15 p.m. at North Rustico (Fisherman’s Wharf), at 4:35 p.m. at Hunter River Irving, at 5 p.m. at South Shore Actiplex (Crapaud Rink), at 5:25 p.m. at the Cornwall APM Centre.
— Bus #3 at 4:30 at Murray River Rink, at 4:50 p.m. at Montague Wellness Centre and at 5:10 p.m. at Vernon River Hall.
All buses will depart Confederation Landing Park from Founders Hall at 8:15 p.m.

http://www.theguardian.pe.ca/index.cfm?sid=304689&sc=98

Torch relay snubs Kings County, MLA says

WAYNE THIBODEAU
The Guardian

Mike Currie, MLA for Georgetown-St. Peters, points out, to many people’s surprise, that Wood Islands is not in Kings County. The port community, which is home to Northumberland Ferries, is in Queens County. Currie charged Thursday the Olympic torch relay is snubbing Kings County on the Island tour. Guardian photo by Wayne Thibodeau

Kings County residents are extremely disappointed that they have been left out of this weekend’s Olympic torch relay, says Mike Currie.
The Kings County MLA is calling on the P.E.I. government to consider changing the route so that at least some of the eastern county is able to take part in the torch relay in their own region.
The torch relay comes to the province via Northumberland Ferries at Wood Islands, but that is in Queens County.
Wood Islands is about eight kilometres from the Kings County border.
“I see that Kings County and rural Prince Edward Island has been left out again by your government,” Currie said during question period.
“I’m just wondering why you wouldn’t have went through Murray Harbour, where Brad Richards comes from, Murray River, where Brandon Gormley comes from, through Montague where the member built a new wellness centre and on into Charlottetown.
“Why couldn’t you capture some of Kings County? Why did you pick the route you did?”
But Kings County is not the only region of the province being snubbed for the Vancouver 2010 torch run.
It’s also not going into West Prince.
The furthest west the torch is going is Lennox Island, which is still in the East Prince region.
The Olympic torch arrives in P.E.I. on Saturday.
British Columbia Premier Gordon Campbell will be on the Island with the torch.
A celebration of the torch’s arrival is planned for the Charlottetown waterfront Saturday evening.
Cultural Affairs Minister Carolyn Bertram chastised Currie’s criticism of the torch relay and called on the Conservative MLA to get on board with the celebrations.
“Obviously, if you look at the map of Canada it can’t go through every region of every province,” said Bertram.
“Get on board folks. This is a great event for our province. Get excited. Get involved.”
Bertram said the torch is travelling through rural P.E.I. There will be three planned stops in Charlottetown, Summerside and Cavendish.
“It comes off the boat in Wood Islands,” she said.
“I have the list of communities — Summerside, Wellington, Abrams Village, Lennox Island, Kensington, Margate, Clinton, New London, Stanley Bridge, Cavendish, North Rustico, Rusticoville, New Glasgow, Hunter River, Winsloe, Cornwall, Charlottetown, Stratford, Pownal, Cherry Valley, Vernon Bridge, Belfast, Wood Islands, Bedeque, Kinkora, Borden.”