Transport for London has put all new projects on hold and all existing projects under review, Building reported.
All new projects are on hold until “at least” the finalisation of TfL’s budget following the autumn Comprehensive Spending Review. Meanwhile Building reported that the body is fighting hard to save its £300m planned rebuild of Bond Street station, a key part of the £15.9bn Crossrail project.
In a letter from TfL commissioner Peter Hendy to staff, Hendy said that all existing projects and programmes will be put under review and “where practicable paused until the funding position is clear”.
The move comes as decisions on funding for a number of projects are still to be made, including the £300m revamp of Bond Street. TfL had planned to invest £1.8bn on tube, road and rail improvements in 2010.
However, a senior source close to the project told Building that TfL was working desperately to save the station upgrade. The source said it was working up estimates of the costs of stopping, delaying or continuing both Bond Street and Tottenham Court Road projects, to enable it to persuade the Department for Transport (DfT) to allow the projects to go ahead.
It is seen as very unlikely that Tottenham Court Road will be cut, not least because contractors BAM Nuttall and Taylor Woodrow are already on the ground.
The source said: “Bond Street is really under the cosh. But TfL is a long way through the design process on it so they’re asking what are the costs of stopping it immediately, or what the options are for slowing the process down.”
The revamp of Bond Street would create a link with the planned Crossrail station there.
TfL said that, despite the Hendy letter, a decision between three shortlisted contractors for Bond Street would still be taken this summer as planned. The three consortiums are: a Taylor Woodrow/Bam Nuttall joint venture, a Laing O’Rourke/ Batchy Soletanche/ Costain joint venture, and Balfour Beatty.
Construction Enquirer reported that the Laing O’Rourke / Bachy Soletanche / Costain joint venture is in pole position for the job.
