The Olympic Delivery Authority aims to get everyone to London 2012 by public transport, cycling or walking. Without public transport, East London’s Olympics will literally grind to a halt. Transport needs to work like clockwork so that passengers hardly notice it. After all, the Olympics are about sport, not transport.
TfL and the delivery authority has already sunk much capital expenditure into the DLR extension and in strengthening units; plus improvements to Stratford rail station. The Olympic Delivery Authority nevertheless expects around 10 per cent of spectators to arrive by bus and coach. 10 per cent sounds insignificant but that’s equivalent to about 2mil single spectator journeys for both the Olympics and paralympics (plus direct and indirect workers also requiring transport). Although this pales into insignificant compared to the 240,000 expected by rail at Stratford every hour, failure for whomsoever is chosen to co-ordinate and shift busloads of spectators will cost them a considerable loss of reputation.

And yesterday’s Sunday Express suggests that the authority will soon announce the organisation who’s been chosen to manage and deliver this mammoth road transport project. The paper suggests that there are 50 bidders but also suggests it’s realistically likely to go to one of the Big Five. This is because of the quantity of vehicles required.

The authority suggests that bus and coach services will add flexibility to existing public transport options. These services will run to the heart of the games at the Olympic Park. They will also serve venues outside London, such as Weymouth and Portland where athletes will compete in the sailing events.

As well as direct coach options across the UK, spectators will use buses and coaches at various park-and-ride sites. To help spectators around the sites, each venue’s main transport link will be by shuttle bus where distances are too far to walk.