Rent rises: East London outpaces West London in rental growth race March 18, 2019 Fresh evidence of demand for East London’s housing market has been underlined by new figures today, with traditional high-growth areas in the west of the capital seeing more of a slowdown in recent years. Rents in East London’s nine boroughs rose on average by more than 20 per cent since January 2012, compared with growth [...]
TfL boss Mike Brown ‘hid Crossrail testing issues’ from Sadiq Khan in weekly email update March 14, 2019 Transport for London (TfL) boss Mike Brown ordered references to the difficulties Crossrail was experiencing with dynamic testing to be removed from email updates sent to Sadiq Khan, it was revealed today. At a grilling by the London Assembly's transport committee, Howard Smith, operations director for TfL Rail and the Elizabeth Line, admitted he felt Crossrail ought [...]
HS2 chairman says stopping the railway at Birmingham would be a ‘complete betrayal’ March 13, 2019 HS2 chairman Allan Cook has said not completing the £56bn railway to the north of England would be a "complete betrayal". Cook, who was appointed as chairman following the departure of former Crossrail head Terry Morgan, told MPs on the Transport Select Committee that HS2 was looking at "all options" to keep the project within budget but rejected suggestions [...]
Spring Statement: Chancellor to consult on new ways of funding infrastructure projects March 13, 2019 The government is to launch a consultation on how the government pays for infrastructure projects such as Crossrail and HS2 in future, the chancellor said today. In a Spring Statement overshadowed by an impending vote by MPs on whether to accept a no-deal Brexit, Philip Hammond said he would consult business on how to fund [...]
Balfour Beatty: UK’s largest construction firm returns margins to ‘industry standard’ March 13, 2019 Balfour Beatty’s turnaround plan has returned the once troubled construction firm to “industry standard” margins, according to chief executive Leo Quinn. The biggest constructor in the UK reported an increase in profits and an order book growing more than a tenth year-on-year in its 2018 results, prompting shares to rise 1.2 per cent in morning trading. [...]
Crossrail boss refuses to give railway opening date but ‘very much wants’ 2020 launch March 6, 2019 Crossrail's new chief executive has refused to confirm any date for when the railway will open, saying only that the company "very, very much wants to get this done in 2020". Addressing Westminster's Public Accounts Committee (PAC) today, Mark Wild said Crossrail's next update, due in April, would provide a "window" of opening dates rather [...]
Looking for space for homes in the capital? Build over rail lines March 4, 2019 A new survey of housebuilders published last week by construction consulting and design agency McBains is depressing reading for Londoners looking to get a foot on the housing ladder. Although two thirds of housebuilders in London reported that they had built more homes over the last 12 months, those that stated a decrease cited a [...]
HS2 hit with legal claim from American engineering giant Bechtel over Old Oak Common contract March 3, 2019 HS2 has been hit with a legal claim by American engineering giant Bechtel after it failed to secure a £1bn contract to build Old Oak Common station. Last year Bechtel signed a £170m contract to deliver phase 2b of the railway, which will stretch from Crewe to Manchester, and the West Midlands to Leeds. The [...]
Crossrail: Bond Street station work ‘could slip beyond 2019’ February 28, 2019 Completion of Crossrail's Bond Street station could slip to "late 2019 or even beyond", Transport for London (TfL) has admitted. New TfL papers reveal that none of the Crossrail stations are fully complete and that Bond Street, regarded as one of the more complex stations to fit out, would either be finished at the end of [...]
Crossrail 2 set to cost taxpayers £41.3bn, reveals London mayor February 27, 2019 Crossrail 2 is set to cost over £40bn, the Mayor of London has revealed in a budget document published earlier this week. The £41.3bn estimate for the proposed north to south London line is higher than the Greater London Authority's widely cited £30bn budget, which is based on 2014 prices. Read more: Crossrail 2 boss says [...]