TfL Travel Ambassadors for Rugby World Cup 2015

• Opening Ceremony and England vs Fiji at Twickenham tomorrow marks the start of Rugby World Cup 2015
• Public Transport and roads serving venues will be busier than usual on match days so TfL is advising Londoners to plan ahead
• Live travel information is available through the @TfLtrafficnews, @TfLbusalerts and @TfLtravelalerts Twitter feeds throughout the Tournament

With less than 48 hours until one of the world's largest sporting events kicks off in Twickenham, Transport for London (TfL) is helping to make sure Rugby World Cup 2015 is the best ever by standing up a squad of 550 Travel Ambassadors.

Travel Ambassadors - kitted out in magenta - will be helping spectators get around the Capital and will make sure regular users of the transport network know that it will busier at different times around venues over the Tournament. Londoners are advised to plan journeys ahead, and where possible avoid travelling at the busiest times - before and after matches.

Leon Daniels, Managing Director of Surface Transport at TfL, said:

'The clock is ticking until Rugby World Cup 2015 finally kicks off, and we're well and truly ready to help host the best Tournament ever. Over the six-week Tournament the Capital will be a fantastic place to be. However, on match days parts of the transport network will be busier than normal. Londoners are advised to plan ahead so they can get around easily whether or not they are watching the Rugby.'

Between Friday 18 September and Saturday 31 October, there will be 17 matches across three London venues - The Stadium, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford, Wembley Stadium and Twickenham Stadium, the home of English Rugby. Magenta signage has already appeared across the network to get fans to venues and keep Rugby World Cup 2015 at the forefront of commuters' minds.

Services to and from the Twickenham area, particularly from Waterloo, will be much busier than usual during the evening peak as the Tournament kicks off tomorrow. Tube and rail users in the south west of London are advised to plan their journeys ahead and avoid, where possible, travelling during the busiest times - three hours before and two hours after matches.

Venues will operate differently from usual during the Tournament. A full closure of part of the A316 Great Chertsey Road - between Hospital Bridge Road and London Road - will be in place three hours before and during all matches at Twickenham Stadium. The road will be reopened as soon as it is safe to do so - which is expected to be around two hours after the end of the matches. Drivers are therefore advised to avoid the area for up to three hours after to allow congestion to disperse. Road users are advised to plan alternative routes and avoid travelling in the area during matches. Other roads, around Twickenham Stadium, such as Whitton Road, Rugby Road and Mogden Lane, will also be closed.

One million spectators are expected in London over the six-week Tournament with large numbers of people enjoying the rugby atmosphere at bars, pubs and Fanzones across the Capital. Spectators are encouraged to use the bespoke Rugby World Cup 2015 journey planner and travel information at rugbyworldcup.com/journeyplanner and the detailed venue travel guides available at rugbyworldcup.com/travel. In addition spectators can use the Rugby World Cup 2015 app to plan routes to match venues and Fanzone, and get live updates via @RWCTravel.

While most transport services across London will be unaffected and will be operating as normal, public transport and roads serving the stadiums will be much busier before and after the matches. Customers and road users not attending the matches are advised to, where possible, avoid these venues when games are taking place and plan their journeys at TfL.gov.uk/rugby-travel.

TfL, the boroughs and the tournament organisers, England Rugby 2015, have engaged extensively with residents, commuters and businesses in the venue areas to ensure they are aware of the tournament and any impact it may have on them.

Notes to Editors:

• The Rugby World Cup is the third largest sporting event in the world.
• The Fanzones will be located in the following locations:

1. Richmond - Old Deer Park;
2. Brent - Wembley Park (for Wembley match ticket holders only);
3. Newham - Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park;
4. Trafalgar Square will be open from the Semi Final through to the Final.

• TfL, the Rugby World Cup organisers, local boroughs and other transport partners are working closely to minimise disruption with extra transport services for spectators including shuttle coaches and park-and-ride shuttle services. Spectators and regular customers will benefit from enhanced District line of up to 50 per cent and significantly enhanced South West Trains services on match days.
• The A316 will close two hours before events and reopen as soon as safe to do so. This is expected to be around two hours after the end of the event, however drivers are advised to avoid the area for up to three hours after as traffic congestion will take time to disperse
• Local boroughs and the Rugby World Cup organisers have also committed to working with TfL to ensure that local residents and businesses, emergency services and urgent care professionals as well as regular customers and road users are clearly informed of any plans and available alternative routes.
• An image of two Travel Ambassadors and Women's Rugby World Cup 2014 winner and ITV commentator Maggie Alphonsi may be found here https://www.flickr.com/photos/tflpress/albums/72157658742075075