TRANSPORT IS “STARVING”
“I was hours from having to stop the Underground and buses in the greatest city on Earth”
Mike Brown, Outgoing Commissioner, Transport for London
“London needs the Elizabeth Line more than ever and everyone at Crossrail is working towards the delivery of a safe and reliable railway.”
That was the message from Crossrail Chief Executive Mark
Wild in his latest update letter sent to the London Transport Assembly (dated July 3).
Wild wrote that focus remains on doing everything possible to open the central section between Paddington and Abbey Wood as soon as possible.
Work is being re-sequenced, and a plan developed to enable trial running to start in earnest soon. This will include a five-week blockade across the tunnels, track, shafts and portals to allow clear access for construction and testing staff during August.
Integration testing will be carried out during this period. There are 25 different scenarios that must be fully tested and completed, including a reboot of the central section signalling system.
To start trial running, Crossrail must achieve the following: all central section stations certified as ready to support trial running; complete handover of the shafts and portals to Transport for London; complete dynamic testing of the signalling and train systems; handover of the completed route to TfL; complete the safety and assurance process for the Elizabeth
Line; obtain regulatory approval from the Office of Rail and Road to start trial running.
Wild confirmed that dynamic testing resumed on May 30: “Testing of PD+11 software will conclude prior to the blockade and will mean that Crossrail has a viable software product available for trial running. The next evolution of software, referred to as TR2, will be ready for trial running.”
He said that all stations except Bond Street are now certified to support trial running. This station was around a year behind the others and has been further affected by the COVID-19 situation regarding the number of people needed on site and the amount of work still required. It was agreed that Costain Skanska Joint Venture, contractor at the station, would end its contract on June 24 with Crossrail Ltd overseeing the completion of the works.
Wild said work continues on understanding the financial and delivery implications of COVID-19 on the programme. That will be discussed by the Board later in July, he said.
He also confirmed that the nine-car Class 345 fleet has been taken out of service for a ‘critical software fix’, meaning seven-car ‘345s’ are once again operating between London Paddington and Reading. They have yet to start running to Heathrow Airport.