As the excitement over winning the bid to host the 2012 Olympic Games gives way to concerns over spiralling budgets, the prospect of an innovative piece of IT forming a part of the planning is about as welcome as a strain of Legionnaires’ in the swimming pool. Public sector IT projects do not have a great reputation for coming in on time and to budget. However, this time, there may be cause for optimism.

According to well-placed sources, the innovative bit of technology in question will be used to make getting to – and into – the Games’ stadia trouble-free and safe. The plan is to use the highly successful Oyster Card – the electronic travel permit which is now used by millions of Londoners – as a proxy Games ticket.

This scheme, it is hoped, will help alleviate both motor and pedestrian congestion, by allowing the multitude of spectators to travel to the 2012 Olympics in East London via the London transport network and access the stadium using the a single electronic pass.

“Having cars all heading into East London is going to be a shambles,” the source explains. “What [the authorities] want are people parking out in the peripheries and actually travelling in on an integrated basis – because otherwise queues at Stratford station are just going to kill it; there will be a public order issue associated with that, and not least a potential security issue. [The] technology should become an enabler.”

Oyster admits it has been “in ongoing discussions” with the Olympic Delivery Authority, but a company spokesperson declined to confirm the details of any particular arrangement.