Cars Come First

In a far cry from the simpler times of the first Olympics held in Athens, the Olympics 2004 need to take into account the needs of the automobile.



To this end, over 56000 parking and access control permits have been handed out to the various municipalities in the Athens area. During the period from the 2nd of August to the 31st of August special parking and access restrictions will be in place; in order to ensure that Athens, noted for its free flowing easy to navigate streets and highways, remains free of congestion.



The allocation of these valuable documents, doubtless there will be a black market in them, has been based on on the number of applications filled in at the Municipalities.



From a cursory glance at the different codings on the permits, and the restrictions applicable to each type of permit, it seems that the citizens of Athens will need to apply some considerable intellectual effort if they wish to understand the rules and regulations.



I cite this, as a random example, of the rules from the official press release:



"All vehicles may enter the Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ), but only those with a Venue Access and Parking Permit for the specific CPZ may park and, of course, those with Permit for the respective CACZ. A CPZ permit holder is not permitted to park within the CACZ...."



To add to the confusion, that this system will doubtless cause, the access and parking permits will have 3 variables:



1 Colour

2 Venue

3 Vehicle number



Got that?



My advice to the good citizens of Athens is simple, whilst the Games are on, go away on holiday to another city or country.