§ Lord Brougham and Vaux asked Her Majesty's Government:
§ How much money is being invested in the Docklands Light Railway.
§ Viscount DavidsonMy Lords, when the extensions to Bank and Beckton are complete, over £550 million will have been spent on the Docklands Light Railway.
§ Lord Brougham and VauxMy Lords, I thank my noble friend for that very interesting and encouraging reply. Can he say what impact this massive sum of money will have on the carrying capacity of the railway and how much Olympia and York are contributing to the scheme?
§ Viscount DavidsonMy Lords, the light railway is currently being upgraded and extended to the Bank. That will increase its carrying capacity to three times the present level. In regard to my noble friend's second question, the developers of Canary Wharf, Olympia and York, are contributing £70 million to the City extension project in recognition of an improved service.
§ Lord GainfordMy Lords, can my noble friend tell the House whether he has any information as to when the railway will be completed?
§ Viscount DavidsonMy Lords, as regards the extension to the Bank, the first tunnel will be completed by the end of this year and the second one by the end of next year. I understand that the extension to Beckton should be completed in about two years' time, if not sooner.
§ Lord UnderhillMy Lords, is this not a case of a successful public project already achieving a total of 33,000 passengers daily after being in operation for only three years? Further, in addition to the grant from the private sector, to which the noble Viscount referred, can he say how much money has been contributed by LRT itself and how much money it has raised by loans, bearing in mind that the only financial help from the Government has been the extension of the EFL?
§ Viscount DavidsonMy Lords, I shall have to write to the noble Lord regarding the second part of his question as I do not have the details at present. However, I should point out to him that the construction of the initial railway was something of an act of faith by the Government. The great success of the docklands regeneration was prompted in part by the DLR itself. It could not have been foreseen at the time. The original forecast of the number of passengers being carried every day was 22,000 but, as 1186 the noble Lord said, it is currently between 32,000 and 34,000. The railway is doing extremely well in the circumstances.