TfL Restart Major Project Works

Transport for London (TfL) are set to restart all work on their major infrastructure projects this month (June), which includes the £650 million upgrade at Bank station, and the Northern Line Extension.

TfL have applied a ‘safe stop’ on its major project activities at over 300 construction sites in March due to the Coronavirus lockdown.

However, work is now set to restart on ongoing projects after Transport for London agreed a £1.6 billion funding package with the UK Government. Despite work starting on most of their projects, TfL have also announced a £525 million decrease to is capital spending programme for 2020/21, in an Emergency Board proposal which was released ahead of the latest board meeting.

Under this revised budget, annual spending on new capital investments are to be reduced from £1.3 billion to £808 million. With spending on their renewal programme being reduced by £201 million, which is down from £531 million to £331 million.

Major projects which are set for a ‘phased restart’ this month include the 4LM project (upgrading the Circle, District, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines), the Northern Line Extension, the upgrade a Bank Station and the Silverton and Barking Riverside project.

Stations which were undergoing enhancement projects including, Knightsbridge, Paddington and Tottenham Hale, remain under the Emergency Budget proposal, as will the programme to deliver a temporary Hammersmith Bridge whilst repairs are carried out on the existing structure.

All funding allocated to Crossrail remains the same.

The Emergency Budget proposal states that it has “been built around preserving the following projects as best possible”:

• Substantially complete and contractually committed projects: Ensuring we complete projects on-site which have been subject to the ‘safe-stop’ where our contractual obligations outweigh the benefit of pausing
• Safety and operationally critical renewals, including the majority of surface asset renewals which are critical following the two year pause on proactive renewals
• Financially positive projects: either through revenue generation or operating cost savings, or where pausing will cost more than it saves
• Projects that support social distancing. The Healthy Streets funding has been refocussed on measures to support social distancing
• Projects that support the economy
• Third party funded projects, including the majority of air quality programmes

As announced last month, the funding package agreed with government is made up of £505M borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board and £1.095bn in the form of a ‘extraordinary support grant’.

Under terms released as part of the Emergency Budget, £55M will be allocated to “promote cycling and walking, including new segregated cycle lanes, closures of roads to through traffic, and pavement extensions.”

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