By Lynda Myer
In order to delivering the design and construction of new passenger tunnels for its £150M Elephant & Castle station capacity upgrade, Transport for London (TfL) is going to start its search for a contractor in May.
Providing a new entrance for both the Northern and Bakerloo lines (currently accessed via separate entrances), construction of a new station box will be a content of this upgrade plan and it includes new escalators and lifts offering step-free access from street level to platform level. The advantages of this project will be providing over than 1,700m2 of new floor space for passengers and increasing the capacity of the station by over 30%.
The Elephant and Castle Development UK has constructed the station box in situ, while the date of commencing the work on site was in January 2022. All 408 piles for the station box were driven into place before the end of 2022.
With aim of linking the new station box to the existing Northern line platforms, as well as the associated civils works, currently TfL is looking ahead to appointing a contractor to design and construct the new passenger tunnels, as GE’s sister publication NCE reported.
Following completion of a prior information notice for the works that was published in April 2022 to gauge market appetite and capability, now TfL is going to look to invite contractors to tender for the job this May. A new prior information notice will be published in February, followed by another supplier day in March.
In October 2022, the pre-tunneling ancillary works’ tender was issued and the team is currently analyzing the tender returns, whereas February 2023 is the scheduled date for contract award.
In order to better understanding the ground conditions where the new passenger tunnels will be built, TfL carry out small ground investigation works at Newington Butts this month. Some platform rooms at Elephant & Castle have already been sterilized and demolished to prepare for tunneling breakthroughs. Surveys of the tunnels at breakthrough locations have also been completed.
The estimated date for completion of stage one of the Elephant & Castle upgrade is 2026, while stage two of the Elephant & Castle upgrade is the eventual fit-out of the station box.
Meanwhile, former TfL commissioner Andy Byford previously said that it is unable to commit to completing the fit-out due to lack of funds, and this remains the case.
With the purpose of determining how much money is due to be required to complete the fit-out and bring it into use, Arcadis has been appointed to carry out a feasibility study. Procurement for phase two will be commissioned further down the line, if funding is secured.
Being considered as the focal point of the wider redevelopment of the area, the new Elephant & Castle station will support long-term growth in the area after completion, which is expected to see 10,000 new jobs and 5,000 new homes, leading to a 30% rise in the station’s use by 2031.
