Crossrail 2
will deliver essential transport links and help to transform the economy of
north east London and the Lea Valley, but at what cost?
Emerging plans
for Crossrail 2 may affect, even threaten our local environmental and built
heritage including:
Just at the moment when the Reservoirs are to be transformed into a
unique wetlands habitat, a new railway line will slice them in two with a new
tunnel entrance emerging between the Warwick Reservoirs.
Existing tracks
through the area will be doubled from two to four tracks running alongside
Walthamstow Marsh, between the Warwick Reservoirs, past the corner of Markfield
Park, over the River Lea, and up past Yarmouth Crescent and Jarrow Road into
Tottenham Hale.
Why is the
current consultation documentation stopping short of spelling out these
consequences?
A consultation
on the plans runs out on 26th July.
TfL say they
will consult again after they have
decided how the railway will travel through the Marshes towards Tottenham Hale.
This is the wrong way round. Local people deserve to be consulted on the range
of options and to fully understand and comment on the implications before a
decision is made.
What is the way
forward?
We think at
least three options should be developed and consulted upon:
- The likely current scheme (current plans are vague)
with the tunnel emerging between the Warwick Reservoirs, travelling over the
Lea on a new bridge and then above ground to Tottenham Hale.
- A tunnel entrance between the River Lea and Tottenham
Hale (i.e travelling under the Marshes, the Reservoirs and the Lea). The impact
of this option on the surrounding residential neighbourhoods needs to be fully
understood.
- A tunnel under the marshes and reservoirs and under
Yarmouth Crescent and Yarrow Road with a new lower level station at Tottenham
Hale. The line would then emerge between the Victoria Line sidings and
Northumberland Park, north of Tottenham Hale.
We think local
people concerned about the potential impact on the, Marshes Reservoirs
and local built heritage and residential neighbourhoods should argue strongly
for the third option.
We also need to
fully understand how these options affect the possibility of a new Crossrail
Station at Clapton and what that means for the locally listed station building
and the surrounding neighbourhood. This may ultimately prove to be a poisoned
chalice.
Finally, we
need to understand the construction impacts. Where will the main construction
sites be located, what routes will the spoil lorries take and where will tunnel
access and ventilation shafts be formed?
Find out more
about the proposals:
