§ Simon HughesTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the transport infrastructure improvement schemes for which he is responsible in(a) Greater London and (b) each London borough; and what their projected cost is. [158407]
§ Mr. McNultyMost transport infrastructure improvement schemes in London are now the responsibility of the Mayor and Transport for London (TfL). Those for which the Secretary of State retains some responsibility are:
Crossrail:
The Government received Cross London Rail Link Limited's (CLRL) Crossrail Business Case in July 2003. We are supportive of the principle of a Crossrail scheme to increase transport capacity across London. But we need to be sure that the current proposals are deliverable, affordable and value for money.
This is why the Secretary of State announced a review of CLRL's proposals, by an expert team under the chairmanship of Adrian Montague. He has now received advice from Adrian Montague which he is studying closely.
Channel Tunnel Rail Link Section 2:
Running from Ebbsfleet in Kent to St. Pancras station, construction of Section 2 began in July 2001. It is broadly on budget and is expected to have cost £3.3 billion when it opens in 2007. Section 2 is currently over 60 per cent. complete.
Additionally Network Rail and the Strategic Rail Authority are progressing the West Coast Route Modernisation, part of which is within Greater London, at a cost of some £7.5 billion. Other schemes in the wider South-east which impact on parts of London are the replacement of Mark I rolling stock (£1 billion), and the power supply upgrade in the Southern region (£2 billion).
Within London planned schemes include Thameslink 2000 with a projected cost of some £3 billion and the East London Line Extensions scheme, with an estimated cost of about £1 billion, together with the freight gauge enhancement on the North London line (£40 million). The Strategic Rail Authority have also been a partner in the launch of the "Overground Network" with Transport for London, involving branding and customer information enhancements at 40 south London stations at a total cost of £1.5 million. There are also a number of smaller scale improvements being taken forward via the Rail Passenger Partnerships (RPP) fund.
With the exception of one RPP scheme (Brentford station improvement), none of the schemes mentioned falls within a single London borough.