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Anger as rail depot gets under way near homes
Oct 30 2007
THE East London Extension line has been universally welcomed by
residents and politicians.
By mid-2010, the line will run north through Lewisham and Southwark,
to the East End, City and Shoreditch, with an extension to Highbury
and Islington due in February 2011.
But the monumental upgrade is not without problems, as fears have
emerged about the scale of development.
New Cross residents' lives have already been disrupted on work that
has started on a new depot to serve the line.
They fear this may be the start of an ongoing problem and that local
authorities in their rush to usher the scheme in have forgotten about
their welfare.
Dorian Williams, from New Cross Gate, said the new depot was
surrounded by homes whose owners were not getting the consideration
they deserved.
He said: "Tenants and residents feel that the removal of trees and
undergrowth from around the depot site has significantly impacted on
their quality of life.
"We are shocked to discover there is nothing requiring Transport for
London (TfL) and their contractors to reinstate any trees or
vegetation after the works have been completed."
Mr Williams has helped organise a New Cross Gate residents' liaison
group which has so far met with contractor Balfour Beatty four
times,most recently on October 16.
Network Rail representatives have failed to attend a single meeting
and TfL did not go to the most recent one, although it says a
representative from the works contractor did attend.
Mr Williams said: "Despite four meetings, we are not getting anywhere
and it is just becoming a talking shop.We are still asking the same
questions without getting anywhere and feel we are being fobbed off."
Mr Williams and fellow residents believe the extension works will
create serious noise and pollution for residents, and the new flyover
will look bad and cause vibrations in houses.
Aref Makooi who lives in Cold Blow Lane,said: "My home is close to the
line and depot and, since they started cutting down the trees, we
could hear a lot more noise and it is really annoying at times.
"The fact that they were working 24 hours, seven days a week, has been
stressful - there's two of us living here, we work from home and it's
disturbing.
"It is upsetting that there is very little response from the council
or the railways."
Resident Flemming Rasmussen said: "There has been an attitude that
this is going to be done no matter what the cost.
"I'm in Sterling Gardens and have huge concerns about the new 24-hour
depot.
"We have no proof that promises that a sound barrier will be put in.
"When I mentioned that work has to start more than three years after
planning was given, in 1997, and that new consultations should have
been held, my concerns were brushed aside by the council and TfL.
"The only people that have been trying to inform us has been Balfour
Beatty. In Sterling Gardens we were never invited to any meeting about
the extension until February this year.
"We need to be better consulted and reassured about the impact on our
neighbourhood. We are not against progress but we have been badly
treated."
A TfL spokesman said: "We appreciate that construction on this scale
inevitably involves some disruption to local residents, but we would
ask them to bear with us, because the extended East London line will
bring great benefits to the area.
"Staying in touch with local residents is important to us.
"In April, we invited more than 1,000 people to an information centre
about the project, and we continue to ensure that our contractor BBCJV
organises two meetings a month to keep local residents informed."
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