107th IOC Session - LA84 Foundation

Special vehicles were
utilised for on-snow
driving.
244
Cars were available for use between 6 a.m.
and 12 midnight within the Olympic area. Since
the working day was very long, the drivers of all
but privately-assigned cars worked shifts.
Vehicles were based in Nagano, Hakuba,
Yamanouchi, Karuizawa, and the Olympic
Village, and were managed from the
Transportation Centre, or from regional transportation
counters staffed by NAOC personnel
and volunteers.
The reservation and management of vehicles
was carried out by computerized vehicle control
system. However, reservations for privately-assigned
cars, shared assigned cars, and NOC cars
could also be made by the NAOC-assigned volunteer
assistant (see Vol.1, chapter 7), rather
than through a Transportation Centre. At major
hotels, the Olympic Village, and some train stations
there were vehicles on standby, which
were available for use without reservation.
These cars were an integral part of trouble-free
operations.
The transportation plan required that cars be
reserved at least one day in advance and the driver
informed of the next day’s schedule; in practice,
users often did not relay this information to
drivers until the last minute. This is something
that future Games organizers should take into
account. Communication with drivers was
through cellular telephones, MCA radios, or
pagers, depending on the vehicle category.
Organizers of future Games should consider
giving each driver a cellular telephone to facilitate
easy communication.
It also proved difficult to obtain a supply of
qualified drivers, particularly those with foreign
language ability. Due to the long working day,
drivers worked in shifts for a total of 1,800 people
per day. A number of companies agreed to
provide driving services for NOCs, with each
company looking after the needs of one NOC.
Toyota also agreed to provide drivers, and local
government employees and volunteers were recruited,
for a total of 44,325 shifts during the
Games. Training sessions were held right until
the start of the Games, and included explanation
of duties and actual driving on the routes.
Taxis
In anticipation that spectators and some
Games personnel would use taxis, the Nagano
Taxi Association was asked to provide vehicles
on standby at certain venues. One hundred and
three extra taxis were put into service to cover
Nagano, Hakuba, Yamanouchi, and Nozawa
Onsen. It was found that members of the media
would often hire a taxi for an entire day or
longer, and that other Games-related personnel
also made frequent use of taxis.