Greenwich Park will close for a month during the Olympics

The committee responsible for organising the London 2012 Olympic Games has announced new plans that reduce the time Greenwich Park will need to be closed to the public while equestrian events take place.

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) now suggests closing the park for four weeks instead of the originally proposed six to eight weeks.

Olympic dressage, show jumping and eventing are all planned to be situated in the park, as well as the equestrain phase of the modern pentathlon competition and the paralympic equestrianism.

LOCOG now says the children’s playground and most of the flower garden in the park can stay open throughout the Olympics, except on the day of the cross-country event.

They also have said no residential road closures are planned and LOCOG has proposed using an open area close to the park — Circus Field in Blackheath — as an operational compound to avoid the need for large vehicle access to the park.

A formal consultation process with interested parties is taking place throughout October and November before LOCOG submits its final planning applications.

For more information, visit www.london2012.com/greenwichparkconsultation

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