Xavier Gonzalez has praised the decision to call a major transport hub the "Paralympic Terminal" ©Getty Images

International Paralympic Committee (IPC) chief executive Xavier Gonzalez has expressed his delight after Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Paes named one of the main transport hubs in the city the “Paralympic Terminal”.

The naming of the terminal followed the opening of the 26-kilometres road between the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic clusters in Barra and Deodoro.

Named the Transolímpica, the road is seen as key to cutting journey times between major Games locations for athletes, fans and officials.

Journey times between Deodoro and Recreio to the west of Barra are expected to be reduced by 60 per cent.

The Paralympic Terminal is the main station that integrates the new Transolimpica Bus Rapid Transit with the already existing Transoeste route, which opened in January 2012 and connects the district of Santa Cruz in the west side of the city to Barra da Tijuca, where the Olympic Park is located.

Barra will host 13 sports during the Paralympic Games and Deodoro will be the home of four events.

The new road is touted as a key way to cut travel times between venues ©Getty Images
The new road is touted as a key way to cut travel times between venues ©Getty Images

“We are delighted that the Mayor of Rio has named one of the city’s main transport hubs the Paralympic Terminal,” said Gonzalez.

“The new Transolimpica BRT is a key legacy of the Games.

“It is fully accessible for all and will significantly reduce travel times, which will be particularly important for us during Games time.”

The use of the road will be restricted throughout the duration of the Games, with only athletes, Rio 2016 workers and other people with credentials allowed access.

Spectators with the RioCard travel card will also be able to use the new road, with 70,000 people expected to use the BRT service in addition to around 55,000 vehicles using the road per day.

Construction of the transport link began in July 2012 with the BRT corridor and the road, which has two lanes for other vehicles in each direction, ultimately costing 2.2 billion reals (£500 million/$670 million/€600 million) to build.