Southwark could get tram network before 2030 as London Underground Bakerloo line extension on hold
| Published date | 01 April 2021 |
| Date | 01 April 2021 |
Croydon's Tramlink cost £200 million and was built in six years, while the latest cost estimate for the Bakerloo line extension from Elephant and Castle is £3.1 billion.
Originally it was estimated that the Bakerloo line extension would take around seven years to build but work to implement the extension is currently on hold because of the Covid-19 pandemic. It is thought the tram network would take between five and eight years to build.
While we neither know how much a Southwark tram network would cost nor exactly how much the Bakerloo Tube line extension would cost, the disparity in estimates suggests the latter would be much more expensive.
It also seems as if the Bakerloo line extension could take longer to make happen because of Covid delays.
The Lib Dem proposal would hope to see the tram network operating fairly soon, possibly with a pilot before 2030.
According to the Lib Dem motion, however, TfL is “unlikely to commence building the [Bakerloo line extension] until well into the 2030s with no service before the 2040s”.
In additional benefits, Croydon's Tramlink provoked approximately £1.5 billion of inward development in Croydon.
Trams are also a much more environmental form of transport as it runs on renewable energy.
A tram network is seen as a viable transport option in Southwark as the road between Elephant and Castle to New Cross is wide enough for a tram line. Difficulties could, however, arise past New Cross as the roads toward Lewisham are significantly narrower.
If the tram network is approved, it is likely that the £3.1 billion Bakerloo line extension will still go ahead, as both the council and TfL have expressed their commitment to it.
So how likely is it the tram network will happen
If the proposed tram network is to be approved, it must show it would not reduce the expected revenue for the extended Bakerloo line service or negatively impact the investment in this area of London.
Supporters of the tram network must also justify causing further delay to the construction of the Bakerloo line extension in order to build the tram network, which could take five to eight years.
The tram network is seen as a desirable addition to the area as it could become an alternative to bus services.
The construction of an extension to the...
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