1) Is it possible to view a copy of the contract for the Silvertown Tunnel? 2) If, following the mayoral elections on May 7th, an alternative administration was elected which did not want to proceed with construction of the Silvertown Tunnel, what would be the cost involved in cancelling the project? 3) 4G service is scheduled to commence in March 2020 on the Jubilee line between Westminster and Canning Town – is this still on track to begin in March 2020 and, if so, when during next month is this expected to go live? If it is not on track to begin next month, when it the new expected “go-live” date for this? 4) Is there currently any plans to expand 4G services to other elements of the London Underground, such as the Jubilee Line west of Westminster, the DLR tunnelled section between Bank and Shadwell or other sub-surface lines, following the completion of 4G services onto the eastern section of the Jubilee line? 5) What is the current guideline capacity of the DLR, in the morning peak, between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank? (i.e. only looking at services which provide direct service between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank) 6) What is the expected improvement, in the morning peak, between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank from the rolling stock programme? 7) Currently, there is a train frequency of eight minutes during the AM and PM peaks and ten minutes in off-peak times between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank. Is there any plans to increase this frequency as part of the rolling stock programme and, if so, what is the expected frequency between these stations in the future? 8) If in your answer to Q7 there is an expected improvement in frequency, what is the timeline for when these improvements would be realised? 9) As part of the rolling stock programme, when is it expected that existing “B90” and “B92” will be retired? Will the first of the new rolling stock delivered in 2023 go towards immediately retiring the oldest existing DLR trains or will capacity improvements be the immediate priority in 2023? 10) In June 2019, funding of £3.75m was approved for design works for improvements to six DLR stations - Royal Albert, Royal Victoria, Beckton Park, Gallions Reach, Pontoon Dock and Canning Town (Mayoral Decision #2464). As per the timeline contained within this document, the design works were expected to be completed in early 2020. Have these design works been completed? If they have not yet been completed, when are they expected to be completed? When is it expected that these designs are released to the general public? 11) The UK budget, delivered on the 29th October 2018, provided funding for an additional DLR station on the London City Airport/Woolwich Arsenal branch entitled “Thames Wharf”. What steps have been taken since funding was announced in October 2018 to proceed with the construction of a new DLR station at this location? Is there a timeline for provision of a new DLR station at this location? Has detailed design work been completed for a new DLR station at this location, and, if so, can this be provided to the public or a timeline be provided for the provision of this design work? 12) Currently the DLR operates between 5:30am and 12:30am – are there any plans to introduce a “Night Tube” style service on Fridays and Saturdays?

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Our Ref:         FOI-3652-1920

Thank you for your request received on 25 February 2020 asking for information about various transport schemes in East London.

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

1.    Is it possible to view a copy of the contract for the Silvertown Tunnel?

The information you asked for is available on our website using the following link:

https://tfl.gov.uk/corporate/publications-and-reports/silvertown-tunnel-project-agreement

In accordance with section 21 of the FOI Act, we are not obliged to supply you with a copy of the requested information as it is already accessible to you elsewhere.

2.    If, following the mayoral elections on May 7th, an alternative administration was elected which did not want to proceed with construction of the Silvertown Tunnel, what would be the cost involved in cancelling the project?

In line with standard commercial practice, the Silvertown Tunnel project agreement provides for compensation of costs incurred and loss of expected profits less payments received. As this is a Design, Build, Finance and Maintain (DBFM) agreement, there would be costs associated with cancellation of the loans put in place by the winning consortium to finance the construction, in line with normal practice for DBFM agreements.

No specific value can be placed on the compensation payable as it would depend on parameters such as the timing of the cancellation and magnitude of the claim (consisting of items such as finance fees, mobilisation, design, overheads, loss of profit and interest rate swaps).

3.    4G service is scheduled to commence in March 2020 on the Jubilee line between Westminster and Canning Town – is this still on track to begin in March 2020 and, if so, when during next month is this expected to go live? If it is not on track to begin next month, when it the new expected “go-live” date for this?

The pilot cellular network on the Jubilee line, between Westminster and Canning Town, has now started.

4.    Is there currently any plans to expand 4G services to other elements of the London Underground, such as the Jubilee Line west of Westminster, the DLR tunnelled section between Bank and Shadwell or other sub-surface lines, following the completion of 4G services onto the eastern section of the Jubilee line?

The current plans were published as part of the July 2018 Finance Committee Papers (item 13):

https://tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/fc-20180704-pt1-item13-telecommunications.pdf .

An update will be issued to the TfL Finance Committee (currently planned for March 2020) and shall provide further details on the status of the programme.

5.    What is the current guideline capacity of the DLR, in the morning peak, between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank? (i.e. only looking at services which provide direct service between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank)

Currently this is 3,645 passengers per hour (pax/hr).

6.    What is the expected improvement, in the morning peak, between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank from the rolling stock programme?

We expect this to increase to around 4,000pax/hr. The Elizabeth line will also provide considerable extra capacity between Woolwich, Canary Wharf and the City, and this is expected to lead to a major reduction in demand on Woolwich-Bank DLR services.

We will also be adding extra capacity to Stratford-Woolwich services., The capacity of this service will increase from 2,430pax/hr to 4,000pax/hr initially and then is planned to increase to around 8,000pax/hr based upon new train deployment.

7.    Currently, there is a train frequency of eight minutes during the AM and PM peaks and ten minutes in off-peak times between Woolwich Arsenal and Bank. Is there any plans to increase this frequency as part of the rolling stock programme and, if so, what is the expected frequency between these stations in the future?
8.    If in your answer to Q7 there is an expected improvement in frequency, what is the timeline for when these improvements would be realised?

We do not currently intend to increase the frequency of this service given the effect of the Elizabeth line, above. We currently operate the maximum level of frequency that we can, west of Westferry, so increasing the frequency of Bank-Woolwich services would come at the expense of Tower-Beckton or Bank-Lewisham services.
As mentioned above, we will instead be increasing the frequency of Stratford-Woolwich services where the most growth is expected. We expect to improve the headway of this from 8 minutes to 4 minutes.

9.    As part of the rolling stock programme, when is it expected that existing “B90” and “B92” will be retired? Will the first of the new rolling stock delivered in 2023 go towards immediately retiring the oldest existing DLR trains or will capacity improvements be the immediate priority in 2023?

The B90/92s will be retired between 2024 and 2026, although the exact dates are subject to change. We intend to use at least the first 10 new trains to improve capacity on the routes needing it the most urgently. The rest of the deployment will be kept under continuous review to best balance reliability versus additional capacity.

10. In June 2019, funding of £3.75m was approved for design works for improvements to six DLR stations - Royal Albert, Royal Victoria, Beckton Park, Gallions Reach, Pontoon Dock and Canning Town (Mayoral Decision #2464). As per the timeline contained within this document, the design works were expected to be completed in early 2020. Have these design works been completed? If they have not yet been completed, when are they expected to be completed? When is it expected that these designs are released to the general public?

The tenders to undertake designs for the various stations went out in phases over the last 3 months. Concept designs for Beckton Park and Royal Victoria are due to be completed by September 2020 whilst those for the remaining locations are scheduled for October 2021. It is envisaged wider engagement with the general public would be undertaken around the time of the completion of the concept designs for the respective stations.

11. The UK budget, delivered on the 29th October 2018, provided funding for an additional DLR station on the London City Airport/Woolwich Arsenal branch entitled “Thames Wharf”. What steps have been taken since funding was announced in October 2018 to proceed with the construction of a new DLR station at this location? Is there a timeline for provision of a new DLR station at this location? Has detailed design work been completed for a new DLR station at this location, and, if so, can this be provided to the public or a timeline be provided for the provision of this design work?

We have carried out a feasibility study for the station which is attached. TfL, the GLA and the Silvertown Tunnel contractors are holding regular meetings to determine the programme for the station and how it relates to those for the Thameside West development site and the Tunnel construction works. The timeline for the station can only be confirmed once the HIF agreement with the Government has been signed and release of land has been agreed with the Silvertown Tunnel project.

12. Currently the DLR operates between 5:30am and 12:30am – are there any plans to introduce a “Night Tube” style service on Fridays and Saturdays?

We have assessed the case for such a service, but we do not currently have plans to introduce it.

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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