Olympic inspectors got a taste of French people power today as they embarked on a bus tour of Paris gridlocked by strikes on public transport.

The city is odds-on favourite to land the right to host the 2012 Summer Games, but its fractious unions were unaware that an inspection team from the International Olympic Committee would be in town when they decided to flex their muscles with a one-day transport stoppage.

Much of the Paris metro and bus system was at a standstill, half of all flights to the city's two airports were cancelled or delayed, and post office and government offices were closed.

But it was light rain rather than industrial action that put a dampener on the inspection visit, as the IOC team went this morning to see the proposed site for the Olympic village in the north of Paris. Paris bid leaders say the sprawling 45-hectare site is conveniently sited minutes away from the two main clusters of venues for the Games.

The protests are part of a campaign by unions and the socialist opposition to force the Government of President Jacques Chirac to increase public sector wages, restore the 35-hour working week and end its efforts to trim the welfare state.

Union leaders say that they have no desire to harm the Paris bid, which carries a promise of 40,000 full-time jobs. Participants in this afternoon's protest march, expected to draw tens of thousands of people, were being issued with banners and arm-bands proclaiming their support.

And Bertrand Delanoe, the Socialist Paris mayor who has been actively promoting the bid, even claimed that the protests could be an asset - showing the IOC how easily Paris can take the disruption in its stride.

"Do you think the committee does not know what democracy means, that it doesn’t know France and thinks the best countries are the ones where there are no arguments? Contrary to what people say, this could actually reinforce our bid," he said.

Charles Bremner, Times correspondent in Paris, agreed that the strikes should not upset the Paris bid. "People seem to believe that the Olympic inspectors will not confuse the issues," he said. "They know how France works and they won't be too surprised to see that there's a day of action."

Making its third bid for the Olympic Games in 20 years, Paris has so far put on a confident display - with politicians from across the political spectrum rallying behind M. Delanoe, and only a handful of Greens arguing against hosting the Games. Polls show nearly 90 per cent of the public is in favour.

For weeks, police vehicles and taxis have borne stickers supporting the bid, a vast multi-coloured representation of the Olympic symbol is emblazoned across the parliament building, and this week buses were flying Olympic flags.

The inspection team - which has already visited London, Madrid and New York and will travel on to Moscow - is staying in a luxury hotel near the Opera and will dine with both M. Chirac and Jean-Pierre Raffarin, the Prime Minister, during its five-day visit, which began yesterday.

Paris's main asset, apart from political and public support, is the fact that 65 per cent of Olympic venues are already constructed, reducing the costs and disruption of organising a Games. The Stade de France, built for the 1998 footballing World Cup finals, is the only Olympic stadium that is ready for use by any of the five bidding cities. Moscow's 1980 Olympic stadium would need quite significant work.

And Paris will even rope in its most famous landmark, the Eiffel Tower, under which bid organisers plan to hold the beach volleyball contest.