COMMUTING:EARLY-MORNING commuters faced delays in London yesterday as some of the special lanes set aside for Olympic traffic came into force.
The delays were despite traffic volumes being significantly below summer averages.
Some 50km (30 miles) of roads will be kept solely for Olympic athletes, staff and journalists, while the public will be barred from stopping or making right-hand turns that could slow speeds on another 145km (90 miles) of roads.
Offenders will receive a £130 (€166) fine if their vehicles are photographed in the designated lanes, while those who park their cars in the lanes face a £200 clamping fine.
The worst delays yesterday were reported on the main routes into London from the west and east, though many commuters appear to have heeded the advice to take public transport.
Traffic was down by an eighth on July averages in central London, according to Transport for London, the agency tasked with keeping the city moving in the weeks ahead.
Drivers heading into London from Heathrow through Hammersmith faced 20km (12-mile) queues and delays of up to an hour at some points yesterday morning.
Travel information services company Inrix has warned that some of the worst traffic problems in the coming weeks could occur outside the Olympic lanes, as drivers seek alternative routes.
Even though some of the lanes have not opened and others will not be in use all the time, Inrix said capacity in places where they were in force was down by a third, or 50 per cent in some cases.
Confusion abounded, with motorists unsure about whether they could use bus lanes and about the ban on right-hand turns on some roads.
Motorists are given up-to-date information on whether routes are available “from some of the ugliest signage in history”, said Transport for London commissioner Peter Hendy.
Urging co-operation, London mayor Boris Johnson insisted that the city was better prepared than any other Olympic city, adding that the special lanes were part of the deal that was signed.
The last time such traffic upheaval occurred was eight years ago, when the congestion charge came into force in London.
Even if the lanes are disliked by commuters, they are appreciated by athletes, none of whom have so far missed appointments at the Olympic Park in east London.
Special lanes were demanded by the International Olympic Committee after the Atlanta games in 1996, when athletes missed events because of traffic delays.
Meanwhile, 300 British army soldiers have been transferred from barracks in Germany to support others drafted in to deal with the shortage of security guards provided by private firm G4S.
Almost half of one unit had been on frontline duty in Afghanistan in May. Soldiers already on duty at the Olympic Park are said to have been buoyed up by support from the public.
