Prepare now to avoid Olympic hotspots in 2012
Q&A: London 2012 TIME TO GET READY
Q. OUR OFFICE IS LOCATED IN VICTORIA. A HIGH NUMBER OF OUR EMPLOYEES TRAVEL INTO THIS STATION EACH MORNING ON BUS, TUBE AND RAIL. WHAT CAN THEY EXPECT DURING THE GAMES?
A. Victoria will be much busier than usual. High demand on the mainline and underground station is expected most days during the Games. There are road junction hotspots in Victoria with parts of the local road network forming part of the Olympic Route Network and Paralympic Route Network. Road Cycling and Triathlon competitions are also likely to take place in the area.
As a company located in a Games hotspot (areas which will be severely affected during the Games) you should ensure your business is prepared and communicate your plans to staff well in advance of next summer. The London 2012 Travel Advice for Business website (www.london2012/ traveladviceforbusiness) offers a wealth of information and businesses can sign up for regular updates to help prepare for the Games.
On the website, you can check the maps of areas which will be impacted during the Games and download the map which covers the local area in Victoria. The map includes detail of nearby hotspots and temporary measures which will affect these areas, such as the Olympic Route Network.
Tools for planning are also available to download via the website. These include a staff survey that businesses can use to understand their employees’ travel habits and a small business factsheet, which details some top tips on how SMEs can start planning in order to keep running smoothly throughout next summer. Advice includes arranging to receive deliveries earlier in the morning or later in the evening, or even overnight, where possible. Businesses are also encouraged to reduce staff travel. Encourage working from home, if possible, to reduce non-essential travel. If journeys are essential, encourage your staff to investigate different routes, times of travel and types of transport, for example using the bus or cycling to work.
Hundreds of companies all over London are currently in the planning stages. One example is a small cycle parking business that employs 13 staff in Shoreditch. The team there is looking at introducing flexible working and is aiming for 50 per cent of their employees to work from home during the Games to reduce non-essential journeys into work. They are also avoiding site visits in the London area during the Games by scheduling visits before and after major events or during less busy periods in the summer.
If you are in an affected area and require additional support, over 50 free workshops are available to SMEs with less than 200 employees in one location. Held every fortnight, these workshops will help SMEs prepare by taking them through the action plan process which covers how to manage staff travel and how to manage deliveries to and from the company during the Games. Sector specific workshops are also available to multisite businesses with more than one site located in a travel hotspot.
To register your interest in either of these workshops, please email keeponrunning@London2012.com