WITH three weeks until the start of what the State Government has said will be an event like the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum and the Olympics combined, many Sydney businesses have not prepared for expected disruptions associated with World Youth Day.

Only a handful of businesses say they will close their doors, or send their staff home for the six-day gathering of Catholic youth, according to research by Telstra.

While about half of businesses are considering teleworking, fewer than one fifth have made any contingency plans, and only 13 per cent have discussed the effects of the event on staff, according to the survey of 200 small and medium-sized companies, most of which are spread between North Sydney and Randwick.

The executive director of the Sydney Chamber of Commerce, Patricia Forsythe, said she was also concerned that not all businesses had fully prepared for World Youth Day.

She has called on companies to consider giving staff with flexible hours or flexi days either the Thursday or Friday of World Youth Day off. These are the days of the papal welcome and the Stations of the Cross. "Working from home and telecommuting are among some of the solutions that businesses may consider."

The State Government has said the disruptive impact of World Youth Day will be as great as that of the APEC conference and the Olympics combined, and the equivalent of six consecutive daytime New Year's Eve celebrations.

The Catholic Church yesterday announced details of a 15-day walk that will bring the World Youth Day Cross and Icon, the church's equivalent of the Olympic torch relay, to Sydney by foot. Its tour of local parishes will take in the suburbs of Liverpool, Mount Druitt, Sutherland, Auburn, Parramatta, Dural, Chatswood and North Sydney.

Three quarters of businesses at key locations that were surveyed by Telstra, a sponsor of World Youth Day and a proponent of teleworking, expected their staff to be delayed getting to work, and one third of businesses thought their customers would be unable to gain access to their premises.