§ Mr. RosindellTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions (1) what his latest estimate is of the total cost of completing the Crossrail project; [11654]
(2) what proportion of funding for Crossrail will be required from the private sector. [11653]
§ Mr. JamiesonThe assumption in the 10-year plan is that construction of Crossrail is to be fully financed by the private sector. In advance of detailed economic appraisal of the options it is difficult to provide an accurate estimate of the cost of the project. Almost £3.5 billion was included in the 10-year-plan as a broad indication of the cost of the infrastructure and new rolling stock. Public support is assumed to be provided in the form of subsequent revenue support, but will depend on the precise project and on negotiations with the rail industry.
A total of £154 million of public funding has been allocated, jointly to the Strategic Rail Authority and Transport for London, for preparation costs of the project in 2001–02 to 2003–04.