Long waits are expected at Vancouver International Airport on Monday as up to 50,000 people fly out after the end of the Olympic Winter Games. (CBC)

With the send-off for the biggest party Vancouver has ever hosted just three days away, the region's public transportation system is gearing up for the exodus from the 2010 Winter Games.

The 21st Winter Games officially end on Sunday evening when the closing ceremonies wrap up at BC Place and the Olympic flame is extinguished.

Monday is expected to be the busiest day ever for Vancouver International Airport, with up to 40,000 passengers scheduled to fly out.

Airport officials are advising passengers to check their flight online before heading to the airport, and to arrive a full four hours before their departure time. But they are promising music and entertainment in the terminal to keep those in line entertained.

Extra trains, ferries and bridge closures

In order to get people to the airport, TransLink will run the Canada Line all night after the closing ceremonies, with trains running from downtown to the airport every six minutes.

"That'll allow us to run 3,000 people to the airport every hour, spread out the demand they'll be facing throughout the entire day," said TransLink spokesman Ken Hardie.

Most road closures in downtown Vancouver will remain in place on Monday in order to facilitate the exodus, according to VANOC. The Cambie Street Bridge will also be closed down once again on Sunday starting at 8 a.m., in order to accommodate the roughly 60,000 spectators heading to the closing ceremonies.

BC Ferries is also preparing for another busy weekend, adding an extra 22 sailings in order to get Vancouver Island residents home.

"We've seen the weekend traffic steadily increase since the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games started on Feb. 12," said BC Ferries president David Hahn.

"We are scheduling even more sailings for this upcoming weekend to accommodate the crowds attending the closing ceremonies, men's gold medal hockey game and all the other events," said Hahn.

Fourteen extra sailings are scheduled on the Tsawwassen-Swartz Bay route, including 6 a.m. PT sailings from Swartz Bay and midnight sailings from Tsawwassen.

Eight extra sailings are scheduled on the Horseshoe Bay-Departure Bay route, including 10 p.m. sailings from Departure Bay and the midnight sailings from Horseshoe Bay.

Keeping the party alive

B.C. Premier Gordon Campbell has announced some good news for those who were not able to take in the free activities at Robson Square during the Games.

The provincial government said Olympic fans want more of a good thing — so it will keep the B.C. Pavilion, the free zipline, skating rink and other activities at Robson Square open during the Paralympics.

The skating rink at Robson Square has been a popular spot to see the Olympic mascots. (CBC)

Campbell said about one million people have already visited the celebration site since it opened Feb. 12.

More than 100,000 have been pouring into downtown Vancouver each day since the Games opened to take in the Olympic atmosphere, attend a hockey game or visit one of the popular free pavilions.

With large crowds of patriotic Canadians decked out in red and white milling about, the impromptu street party has been one of successes of the Games, leading for calls by local businesses and politicians to consider making some of traffic changes and street closures permanent.

Coun. Geoff Meggs said the past two weeks are a good example that people can get around the city without using cars, and he'd like to see the permanent closure of the Dunsmuir and Georgia Street viaducts leading into downtown.

"I think it's realistic to say we can live without the viaduct; we did it for two weeks and if we can find a really carefully thought-out approach [we can] create a big opportunity in the middle of the city. I mean this is some of the most valuable real estate in North America. We should take a look at it, we'd be crazy not to," said Meggs.

Meggs said city staff will be commissioning a study in the next few months to see if the permanent closures of the Georgia Street and Dunsmuir viaducts would work for the area.

Likewise, some merchants have also suggested Granville Street, which is lined with shops and bars, should permanently be turned into a pedestrian mall.