Olympic transport plans apply across UK, says RHA

The Road Haulage Association (RHA) welcomes the news that the Olympic Delivery Authority's ‘Big Build' to help spectators and the rest of London keep moving during the Games is complete and is pleased to see the publication of the Transport Plan for the London 2012 Games.

There is no doubt that the focus of attention will be on London, but the Olympics affects several other locations, so the RHA looks forward to working with Transport for London (TfL) and Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), who will be responsible for transport issues outside London, to ensure that everyone affected by the special arrangements that are being put into place to deal with the Olympics cause minimum disruption not just to London, but to all the venues.

"We are pleased that both TfL and the ODA have asked for our co-operation to ensure that information regarding the impact of the Games reaches the widest possible audience,” said RHA chief executive Geoff Dunning.

Now that the infrastructure upgrades required in London for the Games are already operational, the main focus shifts to events outside London. In Coventry for example, 8 major football matches will be held at the City of Coventry Stadium over a period of 13 days.

"Bearing in mind the close proximity of this particular venue to the M6 motorway, the inevitable disruption for local businesses and their haulage operators will be considerable", added Dunning. "We are talking of much bigger numbers than can usually be expected to turn out on a regular Saturday.”

"Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle and Weymouth are just a few of the other major towns and cities that will need extra consideration to ensure that freight transport and local business needs are met.”