Few faults as hauliers clear first London 2012 fences
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By Laura Hailstone HAULIERS ARE reporting a stress-free irst few days of the Olympic Games.
“It appears people have heeded the warnings; roads are no busier than normal, possibly even quieter in some areas, but obviously it’s still early days. The events at the stadium haven’t started yet so things could get busier,” says Neil Cottam, senior general manager at Aspray24.
Cottam is glad he spent many months planning for the Games with his team. “We know exactly what is happening and where, and so do our drivers. We’re not scrabbling around in the dark,” he says.
Steve Bowles, MD of Roy Bowles Transport, based near Heathrow Airport, agrees. “So far, so good. The crunch will come when all athletes and oficials want to go home at once. They arrived in dribs and drabs so it wasn’t that bad.” Ofice Depot has actually seen volumes drop off by a third during the irst few days of the Games. “We had encouraged as many customers as possible to stockpile ahead of the Games and are also doing some night-time work,” says Jonathan Goode, legal and commercial manager.
The Freight Transport Association says it hasn’t had any members reporting problems yet. “It’s busy, but that’s what we expected,” says Natalie Chapman, head of policy for London. “There was a bit of confusion around the Olympic Route Network signage last week but that’s settled down now. If operators are experiencing servicing issues we need to hear from them.” Kate Gibbs, Road Haulage Association head of communications, says: “As far as the logistical side of things are going, the road haulage industry should be getting a gold.”