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Green Light for giant tunnel
PLANS to tunnel a giant underground railway running beneath the West End have been given the thumbs up by Tony Blair.
Talks at 10 Downing Street on Wednesday gave the controversial Crossrail project its biggest boost yet.
The cost of Crossrail – a high-speed rail link between East and West London – had risen from £10 billion to £16 billion since 2004. But finance chiefs have tabled revised plans slashing £1 billion off the cost.
The plans include a three per cent levy on business rates.
London Mayor Ken Livingstone and Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander met with Tony Blair to discuss new proposals.
The Prime Minister said: “This government is absolutely committed to Crossrail, so I am delighted that we now have a robust and cost-effective scheme that will deliver benefits not just for the capital but for the whole country. We will work with the Mayor and with business to secure a final funding and financing package.”
Great swathes of Soho, Mayfair and Paddington will be demolished if the Crossrail Bill gets the go-ahead as expected in the spring 2007.
Tottenham Court Road underground station, the Astoria, the EMI building and thirty-five addresses in Oxford Street, Falconberg Court and Charing Cross Road near to Tottenham Court Road will be demolished.
More than 100 flats and 20 businesses – including a Grade II listed building in Dean Street – will be reduced to rubble in Great Chapel Street.
Hundreds of people in Mayfair’s Peabody estate could be moved out of their homes because of the noise.
The seven-year works will start in 2008.
The Crossrail bill is two thirds approved but questions over funding have dogged the project.
And the council is angry over the drawn-out plans that have dragged on since 1989. They say developers fear making long-term investments in the West End, particularly the East End of Oxford Street, which would be levelled if the plans go ahead.
A spokesman for Crossrail said: : “Tony Blair has reiterated his support for Crossrail.
“It will bring a transport network to central London that is fit for the 21st century.” |
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