Olympic Javelin train service could be overwhelmed during Games

[bikkuri bahn]

The high-speed train service taking spectators from central London to the Olympic Park is likely to become so inundated that rail bosses have made contingency plans to turn thousands of passengers away at peak times.

 

The Javelin service has been presented as a key part of the capital's transport plans since London won the right to host the games in 2005. Although the Olympic Delivery Authority insists it has "robust plans for a smooth operation", it seems that some hoping for a fast ride on the trains – which have been named after Olympians, including Tanni Grey-Thompson and Sebastian Coe – may have to travel by bus or tube.

 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/may/25/olympic-javelin-train-service-overwhelmed

 

[The_Ghan]

Perhaps the service should be called Shot-Put instead of Javelin.

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[Davo Dentetsu]

Sounds like a big issue.  Let's discus...

 

Fine fine, pass me my coat and hat.

[Mr Frosty]

Perhaps the service should be called Shot-Put

 

Or Hurdles. 

[Claude_Dreyfus]

There has been a lot of doom and gloom over this, with all manner of horrible statistics being banded about.

 

I commute on a daily basis to London Bridge - which will be the number one hotspot over the next couple of weeks. Sure, it will be chaos, however I'm not convinced there will be millions of extra people. What will help is that we are now in the school summer holidays, as well as a number of people I know planning to work from home. Even now, my usual train is quieter than normal, so hopefully that will temper the number of extra travellers expected from Friday onwards.

 

I'll find the true horror of it all next Monday, but I cannot help but feel that it won't be as bad as the typical havoc caused by a 'signal failure at New Cross Gate' or 'a fatality at Norwood Junction', which can paralyse services south of London for hours...

 

The media have been having a field-day over this, which is disappointing, but par for the course I'm afraid. The 'Grauniad' are a particularly sour-faced bunch anyway, so I treat any article of theirs with a degree of caution. 

[The_Ghan]

I agree Claude, which is why I made the joke.  London's public transport infrastructure is far superior to may other cities that have hosted the Olympics, Sydney included.  I loved the Sydney Olympics, despite being in the middle of some messy personal shit.  I'm sure London will do a top job and the transport network will cope just fine.

 

Perhaps we need a journalist's Olympics ... egg-and-spoon, three-legged race, sack-race ...  .... personally I'd like to see them all in the "Infinite Scull" ... a race where they all row out into the sunset, never to be seen again !!!

 

Cheers

 

The_Ghan

[Davo Dentetsu]

That last post of mine had one of THE most interesting typo faux pas I've ever had.  Oops.

 

It's a funny thing how planners build new trains at the quantities that don't solve any issues of overcrowding, yet are always surprised when people actually use the bleeding things.  Same problems here on a rush hour basis too.

[bikkuri bahn]

The class 395 is designed I suppose as a long distance regional/commuter train, but in this case it's being used as a high speed metro (kind of like using a E259 on a Tokaido Line commuter service)  The capacity restrictions of the design (only two doors per side, lateral seating) hinder the passenger throughput.  But in the defense of the railway, it's a condition that will only last for the duration of the games, what's important is the long term use of these carriages, and their ability to provide optimal service.