ATHENS, July 30 (AFP) - The last piece in the Athens Olympics public transport jigsaw fell into place Friday with the opening of two long-awaited rail links between Athens airport and the city centre, just two weeks before the start of the Games.
Putting to rest fears that it was not going to be completed in time for the August 13-29 Olympics, the Greek capital's brand-new public transport grid is expected to start running at full capacity on Sunday.
It includes new suburban railway and tramlines, freshly completed subway extensions, around-the-clock public bus lines and an 8,500-strong fleet of accredited "Olympic taxis".
The 32.5-kilometre (20 miles) long, suburban railway, opened Friday by Public Transport Minister, Michalis Liapis, links Athens airport with the Greek capital's main train station in the city centre. The trip will take 40 minutes and cost of eight euros (9.6 dollars).
With a frequency of 30 minutes, the new railway link is estimated to carry 50,000 passengers a day. Trains will circulate seven days a week from 04:26 am to 11:06 pm local time (01H26 GMT-20H06 GMT).
The new rail link will stop near the main Olympic stadium OAKA at the Nerantziotissa station, expected to open Monday.
A new extension of the city's existing subway network offers visitors a second rail link to the airport. The metro will operate from 5am to 2am (02H00 GMT - 23H00 GMT) during the Games, transporting 500,000 passengers a day.
Around-the-clock public transport will be ensured by a new tram line and about 2,000 public buses completing 13,000 itineraries on ten different lines.
The new Athens tramline started operating July 19 between the city centre and the Greek capital's southern, seaside suburbs where a host of Olympic tournaments take place. Strained by the overload caused by thousands of enthusiastic Athenians rushing to take a ride, tram coaches have suffered several breakdowns. They also often bumped into cars as drivers are still unaccustomed to the tram's presence on Athens' streets.
Greece's underpaid and gritty taxi drivers were encouraged by the government to observe strict car traffic regulations during the Games with the right to level a 3-euro (3.6 dollars) surcharge on fares. The surcharge applies to around 8,500 accredited "Olympic taxis" with special access rights to Olympic venues.
Measures to ease the flow of traffic on the Greek capital's notoriously clogged streets are taking effect on August 1.
The left lane of the city's key arteries will be exclusively reserved for vehicles bearing Olympic accreditations while the right lane will be reserved for public busses and trams, the Greek city's unruly drivers and taxis are restricted to the roads' middle lane on pain of draconian fines.
A massive advertising campaing urges Athenians to leave their cars and get on public transport during the Games.
The use of private cars is futher discouraged by severe parking restrictions near the venues aimed at boosting security for the Games' visitors.
A public transport telephone hotline - 185, will offer foreign visitors information on the public transport system in English, French, German, Spanish and Greek.