Australian troops to help Games transport

Sydney: Australian troops have been called in to bolster the Sydney Olympics transport system after dozens of bus drivers quit over poor working conditions, an army spokesman said on Friday.

Around 100 army, navy and air force personnel would be in Sydney by Monday, he said, to back up civilian drivers struggling to cope with the flow of athletes, officials, media and fans in the lead-up to the Games which begin on Friday.

Vehicles on 14 regular Sydney bus routes, meanwhile, are to be suspended and other services altered to provide more transport.

On Thursday, Games organisers promised better bonus pay and conditions to avert a walk-out by drivers. Some 200 government buses and drivers were also called up to reinforce the Games fleet of 3,500 vehicles.

Army spokesman Captain Mike Harris said 10 soldiers stationed in Sydney were already driving buses while more qualified military drivers were being sought.

"These people have to be suitably qualified with civilian licences, and we're tapping into our data bases to find those people. Come Monday, we're confident that we'll have a significant number of drivers," he said.

The bus service has quickly become the first weak link of the Games, with out-of-town drivers getting lost between venues.

The president of the International Olympic Committee Juan Antonio Samaranch was also left stranded when a bus supposed to take him to the Games' main television centre failed to appear on time.

Organisers have also appealed for volunteer navigators to help direct drivers, who have claimed they are not being properly housed and fed.

Harris added, "We're in the defence force, we are soldiers, we get ordered to do it, we do it... The food's no good? Too bad."

The military drivers will join hundreds of Australian military already involved in "Operation Gold", part of the federal government's commitment to the Games.State Transit chief executive officer John Stott, meanwhile, said on Friday, "We have now been asked by the Olympic Roads and Transport Authority (ORTA) to help supplement Olympic bus services."

"This means that more buses and drivers will have to be transferred from State Transit's normal services and there will be some service alterations in Sydney to cover the shortfall."



(c) Reuters Limited.