Olympic rail providers readiness called into question following Jubilee weekend

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The readiness of train companies that serve London were called into question following the weekend of Jubilee celebrations. Concerns have been raised that Chiltern and South West trains did not run enough services and that there was severe overcrowding at some stations, including Vauxhall. Additionally there were concerns around the crowd management at London Bridge.

During the Olympics there will be an additional three million visitors in London, many of whom will use rail services to travel into London for the Games. It is essential that there is enough capacity in the system to avoid people being left stranded and unable to attend events. To make sure lessons from the Jubilee weekend are learned and acted upon in time for the Olympics, Val Shawcross - Labour's Transport Spokesperson at City Hall, wants the Mayor to call in all the train operating companies, meet with them and make sure lessons from the Jubilee weekend are acted upon.

Labour's Transport Spokesperson at City Hall, Val Shawcross, said: "During the Olympics it is essential that all parts of our transport network operate properly. This weekend saw celebrations across the capital and millions of people using public transport. We are now only 50 days away from the opening ceremony.To make sure lessons are learned and we are fully prepared for the Olympics I am calling on Mayor Boris Johnson to meet with all of the train companies and Network Rail to sort these issues out."

"For example, London Bridge Station, which  may  be the worst public transport pressure point during the Games,  has a complex layout and passengers unfamiliar with it were left confused by poor signage. Underground passengers were forced to wait outside on Tooley Street and Duke Street Hill in very large numbers, fortunately the police were on hand to help direct the crowds. Tooley Street itself was blocked off to traffic, however during the Olympics this won't be the case which is a cause for concern'

"The Olympics have been years in the planning and they will be a great celebration of Britain, we need to make sure our transport system is working at full capacity and all of these small but significant  issues, like signage and queuing areas, are sorted out so they don't spiral out of control and cause unnecessary disruption."