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Winning the right to host the London 2012 Olympic Games was a great achievement for London and the British Olympic Association. The Olympic Games and Paralympic Games are the largest sporting events in the world. The entire public funding package for the Olympics, including transport, is £2.375 billion; the whole operating cost of the Games, again including transport, is £1.5 billion. £692 million will be spent on the Olympic transport budget, including capital costs; and transport operating costs are expected to be £150 million. 16,000 athletes and team officials, and almost 10,000,000 ticketed spectators, are expected to attend the Games. The Paralympic Games involves the estimated participation of 150 countries, 4,500 athletes, and 3,000 officials and members of staff.
Excellent transport will be a key factor in running successful Olympic and Paralympic Games. A proposed Olympic Transport Plan has been drawn up and published by Interim Olympic Transport.[1] The emphasis now is on developing the Plan; and its efficient and effective implementation. Construction and enhancement work on a grand scale is planned to ensure that the transport system in place in London by 2012 is able to cope with the considerable challenge of transporting competitors, officials and visitors to the Games safely and efficiently. The overall scale of construction for the Games will be unparalleled in London in recent times. Several of the key transport links were planned prior to London winning the Olympic bid. If poorly managed, these have the potential for causing considerable disruption in the capital, particularly the East End.
Against this background, we considered it important to launch an early inquiry in order to identify at the earliest opportunity potential problems with the proposed Olympic transport arrangements. Perhaps unsurprisingly we have found a number, for example:
- Potential weaknesses in the plan for the transport by road of the 'Olympic Family' which is reliant on an uncertain projected reduction of road traffic in August when the Games are scheduled, and which may not have taken fully into account likely increases in road traffic around Stratford by 2012
- Uncertainties about the capacity of the crucial 'Javelin' rail shuttle train service on which thousands of visitors will rely to gain access to the main Olympic site from the centre of London, and the capacity of the new Stratford International station to cope with the anticipated numbers of passengers
- The absence of integrated transport and event ticketing for spectators travelling by rail
- Tensions between the short-term need to deliver transport schemes for the Olympics and the so-called 'legacy' needs of London's transport infrastructure. For example, a 'travelator' between Stratford Regional and Stratford International stations, while possibly not crucial for the transport of Olympic spectators, appears to be the best solution for the transport legacy of the area
- The needs of people with disabilities when planning transport infrastructure and services for the Olympic Games have not been considered properly. This is astonishing when the planning is, in part for a Paralympic Games
- London's river and canal system is a highly significant aspect of the local infrastructure. The River Thames is a magnificent asset for the Games which must be used to maximum effect. We have yet to be convinced that Olympic transport planners are being sufficiently imaginative about the many potential uses for water transport. For example, transport of construction and other materials by road may be more convenient in the short term, but with imagination, extra planning, and relatively modest investment, the waterways adjacent to the Olympic site could be improved to provide sustainable transport of materials and leisure facilities for the future
- We are concerned that all transport operators work fully co-operatively with the Government, Olympic Board, and the Olympic transport authorities to make the 2012 Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games a resounding success. We noted relatively little enthusiasm on the part of transport operators from whom we have taken evidence. In some cases, problems appeared to loom larger than the drive to find solutions. This was disappointing and needs to change. Everyone involved in the Olympic Games in the public and private sectors, must work together with enthusiasm if the project is to be successful.
We are convinced that these and other real difficulties identified can be overcome. But success will depend upon a fully effective Olympic organisation being created quickly; and the Government and Mayor of London providing it with good support. Many Olympic projects have long lead times and require early planning and subsequent management of the highest standard. Interim Olympic Transport must be staffed by the best personnel available. Winning the Olympics offers this country and London with an opportunity to demonstrate that it is capable of planning and delivering a world class event superbly; it also provides an occasion to fail spectacularly.
The influence of the transport infrastructure on the millions of visitors expected will be profound. Visitors' experiences on our roads, railways and the London Underground during the Games will have the potential to make or mar their visit, and their opinion of the capital. The UK's record of delivering world class transport is variable. The daily travel experience of thousands of Londoners is similarly patchy. There must be no compromise therefore on the drive for excellence in delivering the road and rail systems, the buses and trains, and the enhancements to the London Underground and the river and canal systems on which the Olympics depends so crucially.
Looking further ahead, the Olympic and Paralympic Games offers a unique opportunity to invest wisely in the transport legacy of London and other Olympic locations around the UK. The systems and enhancements put in place for 2012 must, wherever possible, be capable of being sustained beyond that date so that maximum value for money is achieved and the transport infrastructure available to the local populations is enhanced.
This is not the Committee's final word on transport for the London's 2012 Olympic Games but a 'first bite'. Indeed, our work threw up as many questions as it answered, as this report makes clear. In the period to 2012 we shall return to examine progress in developing the Olympic Transport Plan to check what progress is being made. We expect to find that those responsible for the provision of transport for the Games are tackling the job of providing the infrastructure and management services required with vigour and imagination.
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