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London Hacked Its Own Traffic Lights To Make Sure It Got the Olympics

Posted by timothy on from the much-less-inspiring-than-vangelis'-music dept.

bmsleight writes "Does it count as a hack if you change your own system? Vanity Fair report that during the bidding process for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the London Streets Traffic Control Center followed each vehicle using CCTV, 'and when they came up to traffic lights,' [bid committee CEO Keith] Mills said, 'we turned them green.'"

3 of 202 comments (clear)

  1. standard operating procedure by Swampash · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Every Olympic bid since Sydney's bid for the 2000 games has done the same. This isn't anything new.

  2. Using CCTV by BeerCat · · Score: 5, Interesting

    using CCTV to change traffic lights (apart from showing just how widespread the coverage in London is) is almost minor compared to some of the other bid stunts - they took the motorcade through the (at that time, not yet opened) railway tunnels from St Pancras to Stratford, as if to demonstrate how easy it was to get to the Olympic site - provided you didn't see any of that "get in the way" stuff. Like the city...

    --
    "She's furniture with a pulse"
    1. Re:Using CCTV by asdf7890 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      The bit that gets me riled is that to even be permitted to bid we had to create legislation protecting the commercial interests of the little jamboree we are funding this year.

      Since I learned that I went from keeping my disinterest to myself and just not paying any attention to the proceedings to actively telling people that fact (people tend to either be shocked or simply refuse to believe it) and making sure I know who the sponsors are (aside from us tax payers that it) so when I have a choice between two products I pick the one that isn't involved in the thing.

      (Petty, yes, but in the absence of decent victories to speak of I enjoy my petty little stabs.)