However, London’s transport system largely defied predictions of gridlock on the first regular working day of the Games.
Transport bosses expect an extra 3 million journeys per day on top of the usual 12 million during the Games, an Olympian test for an underground train network that first opened in 1863 during the reign of Queen Victoria.
On the first morning rush hour since the Games opened on Friday night, commuters said buses, trains and the underground were working surprisingly smoothly with few hiccups, and roads were generally clear.
Chris Round, 23, from Boston, Massachusetts, took the underground and Docklands Light Railway to watch the judo.
“It was real easy to get to,” he said. “We just got on the first train that came. It was kinda crowded, but it wasn’t bad.”
Additional reporting by Staff writer
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