Crossrail: Warning over Woolwich station funding shortfall
- Published
Crossrail trains are being tested in Abbey Wood - near to where the Woolwich station is earmarked
A Crossrail station is at the centre of a funding crisis as the council responsible for partly financing it is struggling to raise the money.
More than half of the £15m Greenwich Council is obliged to pay towards the new station at Woolwich still needs to be found.
New council papers reveal only £7m has been paid towards the station.
Councillors have warned of a "looming cash crisis" as the authority tries to find the remaining £8m.
It has led to fears that the lack of cash means money meant for other building projects may need to be redirected, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.
Crossrail had been expected to open on the Elizabeth Line in 2018, but is now earmarked for spring 2022.
In 2013, a £54m deal was reached by Greenwich Council, property developer Berkeley Homes and Transport for London to fund the Woolwich stop.
At the time the new station was hailed as an opportunity to support regeneration of Woolwich and improving access to jobs.
Reacting to the council papers, Greenwich Conservatives' leader, Cllr Nigel Fletcher, said: "I've been asking for months about this looming cash crisis, and how the council will pay the bill.
"This bad deal has already diverted millions of pounds of developers' contributions that should have been spent on improving communities across the borough, and now even more of that fund will have to be raided.
"Our most deprived communities will now pay the price for the council's bad choices."
Greenwich Council said it collects money through the Community Infrastricture Levy (CIL) through certain developments in the borough.
A spokesman added: "The amount collected is continually monitored and reviewed - particularly as a result of uncertainty in the construction sector due to external factors like Brexit and the COVID-19 pandemic."
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- Published16 November 2021
