The first physical evidence of the Games Lanes can now be found in London; including Olympic rings painted on the streets, and road signs reading “Olympic route only”. My August mornings and evenings, and those of tens of thousands of my fellow Londoners, will be spent queuing for hours waiting for congestion to ease on busy underground platforms. Already the tube system feels vulnerable, with tube trains stuck by network flooding, and passengers being walked to safety through deserted tunnels. There has also been the first bus workers’ strike after 94% of drivers voted for action in a ballot (every day they go on strike, the workers promise, they will increase their demand for an Olympic bonus by £100).
Focus inevitably turns to the wretched Olympic Route Network (ORN), under which 30% of the London road network has been entrusted to the London organisers. Traffic lights are to be held indefinitely on green, and extra parking spaces allocated, all so that (at least in theory) athletes and officials can have the best possible access to the Games.
Read the full article on the lives; running blog
Filed under: transport
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