Meeting Minutes Meeting Crossrail Planning Forum Date Thursday 24 November 2011 Place Council Chamber, Camden Town Hall, Judd Street, London. WC1H 9JE Prepared by Ms Pree John Date of Issue 13 December 2011 Action 1.0 Welcome from Chairman/apologies 1.1 The Chairman welcomed those attending the Forum. 1.2 Apologies were received from the following: John Wade and Martyn Thomas (LB Havering), Chris Bainbridge (LB Hammersmith & Fulham) Peter Hitchen (RB Windsor & Maidenhead), Steve Watson (Buckinghamshire CC), Ted Rayment (City of London) Ian Lindsay (Crossrail Limited) Ben Coultate (London Underground) Liz Bartlett (London Councils) Peter Heath and Barry Andrew-Purssell (GLA) 2.0 Review of previous minutes 13 September 2011 & matters arising 2.1 The minutes of the meeting of 13 September 2011 were considered and agreed. Apart from the matter below it was decided to take other matters arising under the appropriate agenda items. 2.2 Item 13.2 Security ML reported that discussions had started between the Metropolitan Police in Redbridge, LB Redbridge officials and Crossrail with regard to the security element at the design stage. 3.0 Crossrail Update 3.1 TA introduced Bill Tucker (Area Director Central). CS and BT gave a combined presentation on updating Crossrail s programme. A copy of the presentation is attached with these minutes for information. CS outlined the key points on the Crossrail programme as follows: Safety Clive Castell has been appointed as the Interim Health & Safety Director and will continue until a permanent H&S Director is identified early in the new year. Page 1 of 11
Current Progress Status - 90% infrastructure design completed - 50% procurement - 4-5% construction - testing and commissioning has not started as yet High Level Tunnelling Programme Main activity taking place in central London between 2012-2014 Central Section Stations - Enabling works have started along the route - Whitechapel stations have been awarded to Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering, Morgan Sindall & Vinci Construction UK JV. - Farringdon station has been awarded to BAM Nuttall, Ferrovial Agroman (UK) & Kier Construction JV - Invitations to tender have been issued for Liverpool Street Station. Network Rail Update - Network Rail will submit their revised costs for surface section to Crossrail on 1 December. - GRIP 4 station designs nearing completion. - First set of Council officer briefings starts on 3 December with LB Newham. It is expected that these will continue through to February 2012. 3.2 CS briefly highlighted some milestones achieved. West PIP: Crossrail are still intending to switch the taxis over from Departure Road to the new facilities by mid February. East C310 (Thames Tunnel: start of piling platform and Woolwich (Berkeley Homes) start of surface stripping. Crossrail Rolling Stock & Depot - Invitation to negotiate planned to be issued January 2012. High Level Programme - Sequence of major works, with the opening in 2018. Key Challenges - CS said that as the infrastructure designs come to an end, the focus for the coming year will be to procure the right systems (signalling, control systems and track etc.) for the railway; and - To purchase the right trains and ensuring that Crossrail offers a world class passenger experience. 3.3 BT opened his section of the presentation by updating the Forum on a meeting held earlier that day at Canary Wharf. Attendees were from the Metropolitan Police, the London Ambulance Service, the London Fire Brigade, selected local authorities, Project Managers along the central area and those Contractors responsible for the emergency plans on the various contracts. The aim of the meeting was to discuss the emergency services expectations of Crossrail s ability to deal with any potential incidences. Page 2 of 11
3.4 Central Area BT said that he was responsible for the interfaces of the Canary Wharf Station (by the Canary Wharf Group), Whitechapel and Liverpool Stations, Royal Oak Portal and Victoria Dock Portal with the running tunnels. C305 Central Area Running Tunnels Stepney Green - 4 TBMs will be used. - Further work has been done on value engineering. - Delivery of the TBMs expected in summer 2012. - Discussions are on-going with LB of Tower Hamlets with regard to the Stepney Green Stepping Stones Farms. - A large number of complaints have been received with regard to noise: as a result secondary glazing is being provided to residents. - New planning consent required for the reversal of tunnelling drives. Liverpool Street - Transition from noisy works to underground works. - Currently 3 contracts to carry out the main works (BAM Nuttall, Kier JV diaphragm works for the shafts); Vinci (Taylor Woodrow) (enabling works); last contract to be awarded in the new year. - Two way traffic now in operation on Moorgate (in accordance with the agreement with the City of London). Whitechapel - Whitechapel station is to be the only tunnelled Crossrail Station with one entrance (combined with London Underground and London Overground through the existing station frontage). - A large number of complaints have been received with regards to noise issues. Crossrail is in the process of providing secondary glazing. - The Traffic Management Plan is working well thus minimising the impact on the community. - Monitoring noise impact (Swanlea School). Sprayed Concrete Lining - Contracted separately because of the specialist nature of the work involved. - Installation of living green hoarding at Finsbury Circus. Canary Wharf Station - Showroom station good example of how to deal with contractors. - Key community activities. Portal and Shafts - Building a new station for the DLR at Pudding Mill Lane to make room for Crossrail alignment. - The Pudding Mill Lane site will be completely closed down during the Olympics Games. - A few complaints were received from residents with regard to the smell emanating from the ground. This has been addressed. - The last portal (Victoria Dock Portal) will be put out for tender in the New Year. Page 3 of 11
3.5 Questions and comments arising from the presentation Referring to the slide on `Key Challenges, and Crossrail s proposal of commissioning art work in the central areas, ML asked whether it excluded the surface stations as it seemed to contradict Crossrail s earlier statement of `creating a single first-class railway`. He asked that, at the least, it included stations at major interchanges such as Stratford, Ilford and Romford. CS responded by saying that it was not Crossrail s intention to exclude the surface stations, however will raise the question with their surface team and Network Rail. BB asked for a definition of a first-class service`. CS responded by saying that it relates to the passenger experience i.e. their perception of a first class service` and the performance of the service provided. 4.0 Submissions 4.1 RP listed Schedule 7 submissions submitted since the last meeting: LB Camden: LB Hillingdon: LB Greenwich: LB Tower Hamlets: Fisher Street Shaft (Plans and Specifications, main works) Lorry Routes (Network Rail) Woolwich (Construction Arrangements) Whitechapel (Construction Arrangements, Lorry Route) Schedule 7 submissions expected in November: LB Tower Hamlets: LB Tower Hamlets: Hammersmith & Fulham: LB Newham: LB Hillingdon: City of Westminster: Stepney Green (Plans and Specifications, Community Farm) Stepney Green (Construction Arrangements, Lorry Route Old Oak Common (Construction Arrangements Lorry Route) Connaught Tunnel Walls and Fences (Plans & Specifications) Stockley Airport Junction Flyover (Plans & Specifications) PIP (Bringing into Use Work) 4.2 TA asked for a `forward look ahead schedule to be provided in advance of the next and future meetings. RP 4.3 NS gave a brief update on project delivery by LUL as follows:- Tottenham Court Road Works are now completed on the Northern Line Platform. The stations will be reopened on 28 th November 2011. 160m of sprayed concrete tunnel now completed. Excavation of the ticket hall under the Plaza is now visible from the surface. Page 4 of 11
Bond Street Progress is underway with the demolition works at Oxford Street. There are some minor problems with the Thames Water utility works. This will be stopped over the Christmas period and will recommence in the New Year. 4.4 NS reported that the draft Schedule 7 submission relating to the reinstatement of Centre Point s St Giles Plaza (Urban Realm) will be submitted to the City of Westminster and LB Camden shortly. 4.5 Planning Regime performance survey TA referred to the Planning Forum s Terms of Reference, in particular that the activities of the Planning Forum include monitoring the performance of the powers of the Crossrail Act. To this end TA said that he had included a series of statistics in his report to the High Level Forum in October. Before next year s report, he proposes to carry out a simple survey of members on how they feel the regime is working. He emphasised that this was not intended to reopen any agreements already reached in the Forum on implementation of the regime. He will consult on this proposal and hopes to be able to say more at the next Planning Forum. All to note TA 5.0 Environmental Health Sub-Group It was noted that an Environmental Health Sub-Group Note was circulated prior to the meeting on Track Formation and S61 Derogation. One question was raised regarding predicted noise levels. 5.1 Site access requirements RP clarified Crossrail s requirement for the CSCS Card. This card is mandatory for all Crossrail operatives to gain access to the various sites: however it does not apply to statutory agencies or local authorities although of course, officers will not be allowed on site without having undergone the necessary site induction course/briefing etc. As part of the continued improvement of Health and Safety systems, if local authority Environmental Health Officers felt it would be useful to obtain a CSCS card, Crossrail would be happy to accommodate this. Anyone interested in applying for a CSCS card should contact Rob Paris (robparis@crossrail.co.uk) in the first instance. All to note 6.0 Employment & Skills update 6.1 Tunnel Safety Card CP briefly explained the purpose of the Tunnel Safety Card (TSC), a health and Safety Access Card that is mandatory on the project. This was run as a pilot card, but it has now been agreed that it will be adopted as the National Tunnelling Safety Card from 2 nd April 2012. To date 73 test and training sessions for the TSC have taken place with a total of 468 individuals having sat the test: the pass rate is currently 92%. It was noted that all test and training for the TSC have now moved to the Tunnelling and Underground Construction Academy (TUCA). Page 5 of 11
6.2 Pre-employment Training Programmes Pre-employment training programmes have now started at TUCA. Wiltshire College, the ESF funding provider, National Construction College and Crossrail have worked with BFK JV to establish a pre-employment and pre-apprenticeship programme for 48 learners in October. Successful completers were interviewed and 20 apprenticeships have been offered work with the contractor. The first pre-employment programme includes generic training as well as specialist skills, such as general Crossrail induction courses, CSCS, working in confined spaces, first aid and manual handling. 6.3 Plant and Equipment CP reported that BASF Meyco Spray Concrete Lining Plant was delivered to the Academy in October and was pleased to announce that this meant that spray concrete lining can now be taught at the Academy. 6.4 Signage TUCA signage is still being discussed with both Newham and Redbridge Councils. Crossrail are awaiting feedback from the respective boroughs. 6.5 Job Brokerage 41 apprentices are currently employed on the Crossrail Project, 16 of whom have been on the project for 16 weeks or more. Crossrail HQ recruited 2 Administration Apprentices in September 2011 to work at the Canary Wharf offices. 6.6 Crossrail Skills and Labour Forecasting The Crossrail Skills and Labour Forecasting will be concluding this month; it will be marked with a presentation at the London Councils event on 28 th November 2011. LBN and LBR to note All to note 6.7 On-Train The second edition of the Crossrail Skills and Employment Bulletin, On-Train was released in October. The next edition will be available week commencing 5 th December. Any comments or feedback should be sent to employment&skills@crossrail.co.uk. All to note 6.8 Young Crossrail Young Crossrail has worked with BAM Nuttall Kier JV (C511) at Whitechapel to support BTEC Business Studies Sixth Form students at nearby Swanlea School to learn about Crossrail (this also included site visits). Following on from the success of Crossrail s pilot work placement scheme in summer 2011, Crossrail will be rolling out a wider programme during 2012. A new pilot undergraduate internship will be piloted in the new year. 6.9 High Level Forum and World Skills Event Both the Crossrail High Level Forum and the World Skills Event took place in October 2011. Terry Morgan presented a skills and employment presentation at each event that covered Crossrail s progress to date in terms of skills and employment, as well as a piece on TUCA. Page 6 of 11
6.10 Local Authority Engagement Crossrail working in partnership with London Borough of Islington and Jobcentre Plus held a Careers Information Day in October at the Council's Assembly Hall. The event was formally opened by the Mayor of Islington, Councillor Phil Kelly. 300 local people attended the event, giving them the opportunity to speak to contractors and other agencies about work and training in the construction industry. CP reported that Crossrail s contractors were well represented by Laing O'Rourke, BBMV, BBFK, Carillion, Dragados and the Museum of London Archaeology. They were also joined by other organisations including Kings Cross Construction, Next Step, Construction Skills and the Jobcentre Plus Olympics team to provide advice and careers guidance for local people about opportunities in construction and engineering. The next event will be in 2012 with Camden Council. 6.11 CP announced two new appointments within the Skills and Employment team (Gordon Mole Employment and Skills Job Brokerage Manager and Georgina Bigam - Skills and Training Manager). 6.12 There was a query regarding the relationship between the Job Brokerage team and the contractors, and the number of local employment. CP commented that all the relevant information will be in the next addition of the On-Train bulletin. 7.0 Community Relations 7.1 GE reported that the Period 8 report will be issued with the draft minutes. GE 7.2 Period 6 GE highlighted some of the challenges experienced in the Tottenham Court Road area which gave rise to a number of complaints to the Helpdesk. This caused further discussions with the utility contractors to ensure that they were aware of any outstanding local issues. 7.3 It was noted that in the Period 6 report there was a strong geographical concentration of complaints, mainly in the west end relating to the various Grout Shaft works. 7.4 Period 7 The Period 7 report included the results of the site surveys carried out by the Considerate Constructors Scheme. The full list for the year is contained within the recently circulated Annual Report (2010-11). Most Crossrail contractors were in the upper 10 percentile excellent band. 7.5 Community Engagement SB gave a presentation updating the Forum on community relations and how the contractors are managed by Crossrail. A copy of the presentation is attached with these minutes for information. The main points highlighted were: Responsibilities for Community Relations team SB is currently in the process of rearranging his team, in line with new the geographical areas. SB to report back to the Forum with a revised organisation chart in the New Year. SB Page 7 of 11
Contractors CRRs Issuing of Information Sheets in advance of any major works starting (via email and hand delivery). Establishing on-the-ground contact with members of the public. Facts & Figures Number of calls answered by the Helpdesk team last year (4000 calls); 437 actual complaints. Complaints Handling 60% of complaints relate to noise. Five claims made under the Small Claims Scheme. Community Investment Working with Local Authorities 7.6 SB highlighted the importance that all complaints received by the local authorities are redirected immediately to the Crossrail Helpdesk. MdA asked that in turn the Helpdesk notify the local authorities environmental health officers when residents complained directly to the Helpdesk. 7.7 In response to a question from ML regarding a Crossrail Visitors Information Road Show, SB said that Network Rail was intending to hold a Roadshow in the Spring. 7.8 BB queried whether local authorities were aware of the Community Investment Plans. SB commented that Jack Day has responsibility for this and has already visited two local authorities. Crossrail welcomes local authority involvement. SB said that he would report back to Jack Day and Tracey Bailey and ask them to contact LB Tower Hamlets directly. SB 7.9 GK commented that Jack Day had visited the City of Westminster. It would be useful to let local authorities know what the contractors were doing and the reason why. This can then be reported back to the Community Liaison Panels meetings. 8.0 Complaints Commissioner s Report 8.1 Local Liaison Panels BG commented that the Community Liaison Panels continue to be a very productive series of meetings. They are chaired very effectively by local authority officers and attended by concerned members of the affected communities. He said that the Project staff provided detailed and accurate explanations of the complex work going on and described future works in terms that were readily understood. 8.2 BG raised problems that had become apparent from his attendance at the various meetings. The people that complained were not normally attendees or were people who felt that they were not being represented or fed back information. Page 8 of 11
The original concerned locals and petitioners are giving way to people that are new to the area, new to the project or are new to the construction processes. BG highlighted the importance for continued vigilance by the Project s community relations staff on the way in which the works were proceeding, the ways in which it is changing (that will involve different people), in particular noting when new people are likely to be moving in to the area. Bearing in mind that this is a regular occurrence in London. This could be difficult to spot hence the Project should be alert to it happening. 8.3 BG further commented that, as a result of the above effect, the Chairmen at these meetings often had to summarise the extent of the works, the construction techniques proposed and the duration of activities that have already been explained at earlier meetings. He urged that the project group staff giving presentations should not presume that they are speaking to an audience that have been in attendance from the start of the liaison process and touch on the background before getting into the up-to-date information. 8.4 Complaints handling BG said he hoped that his Report had been noted with respect to the need for thorough liaison between Network Rail and the Crossrail project. Whilst he was concerned over the treatment of one particular complainant he believed that this type of problem will become more acute as work on the surface sections of the Project move into the next phase. In conclusion, BG said that confusion can easily occur when works are being carried out on the existing railways (which Crossrail services will eventually use) and where works by Network Rail are being carried out on behalf of Crossrail. In order to avoid this it is important that the organisation responsible for dealing with the complaint is identified as soon as possible. Therefore, he has asked that clear protocols are established for the identification of the source of the problem and that information is shared to avoid people being ignored or doubly answered in the future. 8.5 It was noted that there was a significant increase in the number of issues being referred to the Complaints Commissioner s office. 8.6 GE responded by saying that the Project continues to be vigilant when dealing with individual complaints, and is conscious of the population turnover and endeavours to capture new groups and include them at the various Community Liaison Panel meetings. Of course, Crossrail will welcome any feedback from local authorities who may be aware of any new groups in their areas. Referring to BG s second point GE said that there was already a protocol in place to deal with Network Rail surface works. GE 9.0 CIL: update 9.1 CM gave a brief background on the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL), a new levy proposed by the Mayor of London to raise 300M, which was part of the heads of funding. The money can be used to support development by funding infrastructure that the council, local community and neighbourhoods require. The new levy is due to start in the next financial year (2012/13) and applies across London. Page 9 of 11
9.2 CM confirmed that the Examination in Public will commence on Monday 28 th November (GLA, City Hall - Mon, Tue Thurs and Friday). Individual local authorities who have contacted the GLA stating that they will be appearing will have already received further information. 10.0 High Level Forum: Feedback 10.1 DG reported that the High Level Forum was held on 19 October 2011 in Great Minster House. It was a successful event. There were 27 invited attendees including seven local authorities Councillors. There were a total of 10 local authorities represented on the day. Apologies were received from Boris Johnson. The minutes of the meeting will be posted on the DfT website in due course. The next meeting will take place next Autumn. 11.0 HLF Sub-Group & Appointment of Complaints Commissioner 11.1 GK reported that the Appointments Panel has made an appointment. Details of the contract are being finalised. It is hoped that the name will be published as a post meeting note with the draft minutes. In the meanwhile, BG s contract has been extended to 27 th March 2012, to allow for a sufficient handover period. 12.0 AOB 12.1 There was no other business. 13.0 Future Meetings 13.1 Tuesday 24th January, 10.30am Tuesday 27 th March, 2.30pm Venue for both dates: Council Chamber, Camden Town Hall, Judd Street, London WC1H 9JE E J Allett Chair Crossrail Planning Forum Date: 24/01/12 Page 10 of 11
Present at Planning Forum 24 November 2011 Ted Allett (TA) - Chairman PlanningChair@aol.com Secretary: Ms Pree John (PJ) Pree.John@crossrail-complaints-commissioner.org Interim Crossrail Independent Complaints Commissioner: Bernard Gambrill (BG) Bernard.Gambrill@crossrail-complaints-commissioner.org Crossrail: Chris Sexton (CS) Bill Tucker (BT) Claire Parry (CP) Rob Paris (RP) Simon Bennett (SB) Gareth Epps (GE) Martine Monks (MM) Department for Transport/Joint Sponsor Team David Gott (DG) chrissexton@crossrail.co.uk Robparis@crossrail.co.uk Simonbennett@crossrail.co.uk Garethepps@crossrail.co.uk MartineMonks@crossrail.co.uk DavidGott@tfl.gov.uk Transport for London: Colin Mann (CM) Tom Mansfield (TM) London Underground: Nick Street (NS) Network Rail: Stephen Lord (SL) Mark Glaysher (MG) Local Authority Officers: Chris Bainbridge (CB) Graham King (GK) Ian Miller (IM) Karen Lee (KL) Roy Turner (RT) Linda Brosnan (LB) Mathew Durling (MD) Daniel O Sullivan (DoS) Andy Phipps (AP) Bob Bennett (BB) Massimo De Alexandris (MdA) Mark Lucas (ML) Ross Whear (RW) Peter Chappell (PC) Kim Smith (KS) Stephen Burke (SB) Anne Stevens (AS) Chair - Highways & Traffic Sub-group LB Hammersmith & Fulham City of Westminster City of Westminster City of Westminster LB of Camden LB of Islington LB of Islington LB of Islington City of London LB of Tower Hamlets LB of Newham LB of Redbridge LB of Redbridge Essex CC LB of Greenwich LB of Bexley LB of Ealing colinmann@tfl.gov.uk tommansfield@tfl.gov.uk Nicholas.Street@tube.tfl.gov.uk Stephen.Lord@networkrail.co.uk Mark.GLAYSHER@networkrail.co.uk Chris.Bainbridge@lbhf.gov.uk gking@westminster.gov.uk imiller@westminster.gov.uk Klee@westminster.gov.uk roy.turner@camden.gov.uk linda.brosnan@islington.gov.uk matthew.durling@islington.gov.uk Daniel.O Sullivan@islington.gov.uk Andrew.Phipps@cityoflondon.gov.uk bobbennettok@o2.co.uk massimo.dealexandris@newham.gov.uk Mark.Lucas@redbridge.gov.uk ross.whear@redbridge.gov.uk Peter.Chappell@essex.gov.uk Kim.Smith@greenwich.gov.uk stephen.burke@bexley.gov.uk Anne.Stevens@ealing.gov.uk Page 11 of 11