The president of the Paris region, Valérie Pécresse, said: “Don’t be afraid to walk a little. It’s good for your health”.

Although the premise is true, as walking is very beneficial to health, it has outraged many citizens accustomed to overcrowded and problematic public transport. Doubts have been raised about how spectators will be transported around the touristy French capital, especially as these Games will be the first in history to ban cars from Olympic venues, further complicating Paris’ already complex transport system.

However, the authorities are adamant that they are ready to accommodate the estimated 7 million people expected to arrive in the French capital for the thirty-third Olympic Games of the modern era, which will take place in Paris between 24 July (two days before the opening ceremony) and 11 August 2024.

The plan drawn up by the IDFM, the regional transport authority chaired by Valérie Pécresse, includes thousands of shuttle buses and the reinforcement of most metro and suburban lines, with an average increase of 15% in the number of trains compared to a normal European summer.

According to the regional president, the network will be able to accommodate as many people as on a typical winter working day, but with sudden peaks. On 28 July and 2 August, more than half a million spectators are expected. On some metro and train lines, however, convoy frequencies will soar. Line 9, which serves the Parc des Princes and Roland Garros stadiums, will see a 61% increase in the number of trains, and the RER C, which is often disrupted, will see a 71% increase during the Olympic Games in Paris.

One of the French capital’s sixteen metro lines has been extended for the Games. Line 14 will link Orly airport in the south of Paris with Saint-Denis, one of the Olympic venues in the north of the capital.

Despite the expansion, which will clearly not be enough given the number of tourists and residents in Paris and the surrounding area, authorities are urging those who can to avoid public transport during the Olympic period.

“Maybe it’s time to get out your bike,” said Transport Minister Patrice Vergriete. The authorities are also planning to add 3,000 self-service bicycles and have set up nearly 400 kilometres of cycle paths.

The government has also set up a website, anticiperlesjeux.gouv.fr, to help transport users plan their journeys and anticipate traffic restrictions during the Games, making it less inconvenient for those travelling through the 303 metro stations and 219 kilometres of tracks, as well as other public transport.

For motorists, the aim is to avoid closed traffic areas and take into account traffic jams in the “Olympic lanes” reserved for accredited persons, as was done at the last Olympic Games with spectators, Rio 2016.

Dirif also plans to inform users through its “Sytadin” application, radio station 107.7 FM and electronic signs on the motorway. It also plans to alert hundreds of agents to intervene quickly in the event of problems.

Paris airports operator ADP is not expecting a significant increase in traffic compared to a “normal” boreal summer – 200,000 passengers a day at Charles de Gaulle and 100,000 at the smaller Orly airport – although they are still making special preparations for the event.

Athletes’ delegations will receive special attention. “The infrastructure is in place,” explains Edouard Arkwright, CEO of ADP, including 15 new baggage screening lines.

ADP will have to cope with two critical periods. On the evening of 26 July, flights over Paris will be banned within a 150-kilometre radius for the opening ceremony of the Games, which will be held on the banks of the Seine, and at the end of the third Olympic Games in Paris, around 11 August and the following days, when the majority of athletes and spectators will return to their countries

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