Traffic control measures drafted for 2020 Tokyo Games

June 19, 2019

Tokyo--The organizing committee for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games and the Tokyo metropolitan government revealed on Wednesday a draft set of measures for curbing congestion to facilitate smooth transportation of athletes competing in the games and other people related to the events.

The draft calls for setting up traffic lanes exclusively for or prioritizing vehicles related to the quadrennial events, on streets around competition venues in Tokyo.

Exclusive lanes will be established on one section each of the Gaien Higashi Dori street near the New National Stadium, the marquee facility for the games, and on Ring Road No. 2 near the Ariake Gymnastics Center and the Ariake Tennis Park.

Priority lanes, in which ordinary vehicles must swiftly change lanes if a vehicle related to the games approaches from behind, will be set up on streets including Hibiya Dori near the Imperial Palace Garden.

Road signs to show such lanes will be installed.

Other measures in the package include surrounding competition venues with fences, and establishing areas that general vehicles cannot pass through and those where vehicles will be encouraged to take a detour during the days of competitions.

Vehicles of people living or working in these areas will be exempted from the regulations.

Security guards and signboards will be used to notify people and vehicles of such areas.

The organizing committee will decide in October the period during which the regulated areas are set up, as well as measures to ease congestion around competition venues in Chiba and Saitama prefectures, both adjacent to Tokyo, and Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of the Japanese capital.

During the Olympics and Paralympics, the organizing committee hopes to reduce traffic volume in areas where severe congestion is forecast by 30 pct from the levels before the events.

The organizing committee and the Tokyo government also said on Wednesday that they will conduct experiments for restricting access to the Ken-O Expressway on July 24 and 26, in preparation for the 2020 Games.

During the experiment, traffic headed for central Tokyo will be limited at 11 of the expressway's 32 toll booths throughout the days.

In addition, four of the 298 entry ramps to the expressway, including one near the Olympic Village, will be closed fully on the two days, as they will be reserved for vehicles related to the games during the events.

At 50 of the remaining entry ramps, vehicles will be blocked from entering the expressway once the amount of traffic exceeds a certain level. They will reopen after the level of congestion falls back. Jiji Press