The Olympic Delivery Authority originally intended to move 50% by weight of construction materials by sustainable transport, with particularly emphasis on water-borne freight. But the barge company has been disappointed by the amount of traffic it has handled in connection with the Games; demand for cargo to be carried by barge has been hit by a combination of cheap road haulage rates and the delay in opening Prescott Lock, which connects the Thames to the Olympic site.
Although the use of barge transport has been disappointing, it has brought about a debate on waterborne transport along the Thames.