I wish to formally request a copy of that information - precisely: * a copy of any engineering reports about the condition of the ventilation system between the 24th of September 2018 and this date. * any updates to the risk assessments that give the basis for the initial closure and continued imposition of the restrictions. Additionally, following the further closure for more than 24 hours with no advance notice recently and the continued lack of transparency on this subject, I ask that you provide some additional information, namely: * the precise reason for the most recent closure of the tunnel, and a copy of any substantiating reports, including the date at which the issue was first detected * details of the remedial action carried out in response to the aforementioned closure * the results of any traffic counts carried out from 6 months prior to the restrictions to the present, if these are held. Please include traffic composition if available * the current status of capital improvement plan for the tunnel (has a draft/final plan been started/finished/approved/etc)

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Our Ref:         FOI-2942-1819

Thank you for your request received on 30 January 2019 asking for information about the Rotherhithe Tunnel.

Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Environmental Information Regulations and our information access policy. I can confirm we hold some of the information you require. You asked for:

• A copy of any engineering reports about the condition of the ventilation system between the 24th of September 2018 and this date.

As stated in the response to your internal review request (IRV-096-189) sent on 7 February 2019, this information has been withheld under regulation 12(5)(a):

The information that you requested are detailed technical reports that were created only for specific internal individuals in regards to maintaining the safety and security of the Rotherhithe Tunnel. The safety of the travelling public is, and always will be, our upmost priority and if we were to disclosure detailed security information which would potentially highlight areas that are less secure than others, this would allow in effect an individual or individuals with a malicious intent to cause harm or disruption for their own gain, putting the safety of members of the public who use the tunnel and staff who work there at serious risk.

Similar examples of requests for information that have been withheld under regulation 12(5)(a) have been considered and upheld by the Information Commissioner due to the fact that disclosure into the wider public domain could, on the balance of probabilities, assist those wishing to seek damage and cause harm. For more information please see

https://ico.org.uk/media/action-weve-taken/decision-notices/2014/1027794/fer_0511546.pdf and

https://ico.org.uk/media/action-weve-taken/decision-notices/2016/1560500/fer_0584593.pdf

Another similar example of this is outlined in the Information Tribunal case of The office of Communications v ICO and T Mobile (UK) Ltd (EA/2006/0078). The Information Tribunal considered a request for information revealing the exact locations of base stations. The Tribunal found that public safety would be adversely affected because disclosure would encourage the theft of cable from those base stations rendering them dangerous as well as assist terrorists wishing to cause harm and disrupt to emergency service communications.

Given all of the above and the fact that the current UK threat level set by MI5 remains at severe, with regards to the public interest we have to consider the wider pubic interest and to an extent the national public interest, in continuing our ability to keep our transport network as safe and secure as we possibly can, weighed against the personal interest of a singular or small minority of individuals. The Rotherhithe Tunnel is used by thousands of drivers on any given day and due to the inherent danger that disclosure of this information would pose, this review has found that maintaining the exception outweighs the disclosure of the requested information.

I understand that you have since appealed the outcome of the internal review, we will respond to this in due course.

• Any updates to the risk assessments that give the basis for the initial closure and continued imposition of the restrictions.

Following our correspondence by email on 19 November 2018 we are able to provide an update that Phase 2 (CCTV enforcement of new restrictions) has been implemented to support the continued safe operation of the tunnel. This is being monitored over a two month period to determine how successful the reduction in non compliant vehicles has been.

Additionally, following the further closure for more than 24 hours with no advance notice recently and the continued lack of transparency on this subject, I ask that you provide some additional information, namely:

• The precise reason for the most recent closure of the tunnel, and a copy of any substantiating reports, including the date at which the issue was first detected
• Details of the remedial action carried out in response to the aforementioned closure

The tunnel was closed without notice on Tuesday 29 January 2019 due to a fault with an asset associated with the operation of the ventilation system. There was no advance notice because this was an emergency (unplanned closure) to protect the safety of the public. The tunnel was closed for more than 24 hours due to the repair works and testing of the ventilation system required to ensure the tunnel was safe to re-open to the public.

• The results of any traffic counts carried out from 6 months prior to the restrictions to the present, if these are held. Please include traffic composition if available. This should also include any counts of the number of vehicles turned away, as well as counts of the number of vehicles passing through the tunnel.

Please find attached the requested ATC (Automatic Traffic Counter) raw data in 24 hourly breakdowns for the date period of 01/03/2018 – 31/01/2019.

The vehicle classes in the attached spreadsheet refer to the length of the vehicle, which is measured when the vehicle crosses the two sets of loops embedded within the road surface:

Class 1           <5.2m
Class 2           5.2m – 12m
Class 3           >12

Please note that the total of the individual classes may not match the figure stated in the volume column, this is because on occasion the loop cannot correctly identify the length of the vehicle and so it will not be able to place it within a class, but it will be added to the overall flow volume.

The Average Speed column is the average speed shown in millimetres per second, to convert this into MPH you need to multiply the value in millimeters per second by the conversion factor 0.0022369362920544.

We do not hold information on the number of vehicles being turned away prior to 24 September 2018 as on-street officers had not been deployed prior to this date.

The table below details the number of interventions for both the north and south side of the tunnel from 24 September 2018 to the date of your request. The non-compliance figure are those vehicles that went through the tunnel after being asked to comply with the restriction.

 Combined Rotherhithe Tunnel Interventions 
Period  North Side South Side Non-Compliance Total 
Period 7 (24/09-18 – 13/10-18)  6685 10615 166 17466 
Period 8 (14/10/18 – 10/11/18)  7881 10416 174 18471 
Period 9 (11/11/18 – 8/12/18)  6824 7990 86 14900 
Period 10 (9/12/18 – 5/1/19)  3738 5119 75 8932 
Period 11 (6/1/19 – 2/2/19)  5647 6167 89 11903 

• The current status of capital improvement plan for the tunnel (has a draft/final plan been started/finished/approved/etc)

The project is currently in feasibility stage, which means options are being developed for capital refurbishment – this includes assessment of the benefits, costs and programme for each option. This will inform single option selection which is programmed to be made by May 2019.

If this is not the information you are looking for, or if you are unable to access it for some reason, please feel free to contact me.

Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]

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