Work seven years late – and still it’s incomplete
THE final stage of the Tyne Pedestrian and Cyclist Tunnels’ severely delayed and costly renovation remains incomplete – three years after the crossing re-opened.
Refurbishment work on the tunnels was meant to be finished by 2015, but the project was hit with a number of setbacks that pushed it more than £10million over budget.
The crossing, which connects Howdon and Jarrow, finally reopened in August 2019 after being shut for six years.
But there remains a major unfinished piece of work, with the continuing rigmarole over the installation of two bespoke glass lifts.
Approaching the third anniversary of the tunnels’ reopening, that saga appears no closer to reaching its conclusion.
Councillors were told on Thursday that contractors are still waiting for the delivery of crucial parts for the two inclined lifts, as was the case four months ago.
Fiona Bootle, Tyne Tunnels manager for Transport North East, said: “We are waiting on the delivery of doors and a mechanism. There is a problem with the supply chain, as there is in a lot of areas today, with the steel and glass for those doors.”
Members of the overview and scrutiny committee for the North East Joint Transport Committee were told that completion was expected “later in 2022”.
British firm Lift Design Limited were brought in last year to replace an Italian engineering firm whose ability to complete the project was severely hampered by Covid travel restrictions.
Transport North East confirmed in March that the works had cost £292,000 in the 2021/22 financial year and will lead to bills of another estimated £281,000 in 2022/23, significantly more than the £350,000 previously quoted as the expected remaining cost of the lift works.
It has been suggested that a legal claim could be made against Italian engineers Maspero Elevatori to recover some funds.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service previously revealed in 2020 that the cost of the tunnels’ renovation stood then at £16.9m, way above the initial £6.9m earmarked for the project.
Once the doors and other remaining parts are delivered and installed, the lifts will have to go through a certification and testing process.
The two inclined lifts, which travel on a steep incline down the historic escalator shaft to the lowest part of the tunnels, will be able to carry up to six cyclists and their bikes per trip.
Previous delays to the renovation of the tunnels were blamed on their listed building status, the discovery of asbestos, and original contractor GB Building Solutions going bust.