A MAJOR transport operation has been planned to help fans get to and from Olympic football matches at Hampden.
Thousands of supporters are expected to watch eight games over five days at the National Stadium as part of the London 2012 Olympics.
Free travel is being laid on from the city centre to Hampden for ticket holders as the usual management procedures for crowds attending games at the national stadium won't apply for Olympic events.
With two games a day and some matches at midweek day times, the events' timings are different from the usual weekend or midweek evening matches normally hosted at Hampden, so local people and businesses will be affected in different ways.
Traffic management orders will be in place for around eight hours on match days and there will be event parking zones to allow businesses to access to their premises.
While many of the Olympic events in London are over-subscribed and tens of thousands missed out on tickets, there are still tickets, priced from £20 to £40, available for all matches in Glasgow. When there are two matches on one day the one ticket allows access to both games.
The are from both the men's and women's tournaments at Hampden involving some of the top-rated footballing countries.
The men's matches in Glasgow involve the team representing the current World and European champions Spain, while in the women's competition the USA's defence of their Olympic title begins in the city.
Matches take place on Wednesday July 25, Thursday 26 and Saturday 28, Wednesday August 1 and Friday August 3.
Free shuttle buses and trains, as well as sign-posted walking routes are being put in place to get people to and from the stadium, as organisers aim to get all spectators to the Olympic venues using public transport.
Car parks in the Hampden area will be closed and road restrictions in place on surrounding streets to discourage car use.
Ticket holders can use free trains from Central Station to Mount Florida, and buses from Buchanan bus station to the stadium.
A park-and-walk facility will be set up 10 minutes from Hampden at the Queen's Park Recreation Ground for those who do use their car, or free shuttle buses from one of the chargeable car parks.
Bag searches and security will be in place at the stadium and spectators are advised to leave plenty of time to take their seats before kick off.
Businesses have been warned of disruption but London 2012's Travel Advice for Business team have issued tips to minimise disruption, including
l Check dates and times of events near to you and start to plan.
l Warn staff their journey to work and travel for work could be affect-ed by an increase in visitors.
l Consider reducing non-essential journeys. Discuss travel arrangements with staff and suppliers. Consider whether visitors and customers can reduce travel, re-schedule journeys, change route or change method of transport.
l Think about deliveries. Where possible, reschedule these to less busy days or times, even overnight. Stock up on non-perishables such as stationery before the Games to reduce unnecessary journeys and carry out mainten-ance before the Games.
Information about travel around Hampden is at GetAheadofthe Games.com and transport information from city centre from Traveline Scotland on 0871 200 22 33.
stewart.paterson@ heraldandtimes.co.uk