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Monday, Jul 30, 2012 10:15 AM UTC

First Olympic weekday to test London transport

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Topics: From the Wires

First Olympic weekday to test London transportA car drives along the Olympic lane near the Olympic Park at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Sunday, July 29, 2012, in London. (AP/Jae C. Hong)

LONDON (AP) — London’s overstretched transit system creaked and groaned but appeared to be coping with the strain on the first working day of the Olympics.

Monday morning’s rush hour was the biggest test yet of the host city’s transport network, as spectators and tourists heading for the games joined the city’s workers during rush hour. The games opened Friday night.

Drivers faced the most difficulties. An accident closed a section of the M4, the highway that links Heathrow Airport to London. The route, busy at the best of times, has been narrowed as it approaches the city with the creation of “Games Lanes” reserved for official Olympic traffic.

The lanes — nicknamed “Zil lanes,” after the limousines used by Soviet apparatchiks — caused worse-than-normal backups on main roads near games venues, especially around Olympic Park in the east of the city.

Sporting events are taking place across London, from the Olympic Park in the east to tennis at Wimbledon in the southwest, equestrian contests at Greenwich in the southeast and soccer at Wembley Stadium in the west.

Trains and subways were running without the delays that often plague London commuters. Some were less busy than usual, with travelers seemingly heeding warnings — broadcast repeatedly on station loudspeakers for weeks — to plan ahead and take different routes if necessary.

Transport for London, which runs the capital’s public transport network, warned commuters to avoid some subway lines and interchange stations, and urged them to leave extra time for their journeys.

London’s subway, the Tube, saw some delays and suspensions last week, while road traffic was also disrupted by Olympic lanes reserved for athletes and officials.

Monday evening’s rush hour was expected to be an even bigger test, with one of the city’s main commuter rail stations, London Bridge, due to be partly closed to prevent overcrowding.

More Jill Lawless.

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