Examination of Witnesses (Questions 5500
- 5519)
5500. MS LIEVEN: My Lords, those are
the critical points I picked out of Ms Singleton's presentation
and we will come back on to lorry movements in more detail.
5501. CHAIRMAN: Yes, of course. So far
as concerns noise, this is going to be worked out, is it not,
over a period of time?
5502. MS LIEVEN: Yes.
5503. CHAIRMAN: Are you going to continue
your transparent approach to the whole of this and discussions
with the people who live in Kempton Court?
5504. MS LIEVEN: Absolutely, when we
have the detailed design specification so we know both the periods
that work will be done but also the machinery that will be used,
we will then carry out detailed predictions of the noise levels.
We will then test those against the various criteria we have adopted
and that will be discussed with the local residents as to what
the conclusions of that assessment are and also if they have any
particular concerns as to how they were drawn up. Then we can
move on to the next stage which is to say to people, "This
is the mitigation you will get; that is the mitigation other people
will get", but the criteria are all published now so people
can tell what tests their property will have to meet in order
to get noise insulation, for example, so it is an open and transparent
process. My Lords, I do not know whether there are any other points
of concern.
5505. CHAIRMAN: It helps us, but I hope
it also helps Ms Singleton and her colleagues too.
5506. MS LIEVEN: Of course, my Lord,
and that is extremely important and we totally understand that.
5507. CHAIRMAN: Thank you very much.
Ms Singleton, you have the last word in this, which you are writing
now, I think.
5508. MS SINGLETON: Thank you.
5509. CHAIRMAN: I will give you a minute
if you want to write it down.
5510. MS SINGLETON: No, I want to say
very little really and that is I brought this to your attention
today because we are the people who live in the street and we
will be having ten years—if you count from last year—of
works and I have set out what our needs are. I think Crossrail
have accepted that perhaps sometimes in the past things have not
been as transparent as they could be and it is just important
that we have timely information that, while they are actually
working out their plans, we are informed of these and the general
timescales. I would like to be able to see as soon as possible
the revised timescales that relate to things like utilities work
as well as proposed starting dates. I think these are very important
for some people who may be contemplating that they do not want
to be around to have to live with such a lot of noise or if they
are about to have a baby is this the time to really move on; others
may be perfectly happy about it. I would say that communication
and really working together is now very important for us with
complete transparency and the consideration that there are 300
residents in the street who do need support and care. I would
say that, of course, in the other streets around there are many
more people, so I am really only talking specifically about the
lower part of Brady Street and Durward Street. If we need that
support and care, the community do as well.
5511. CHAIRMAN: I think one of your troubles
is it is not just Crossrail, is it? It is some of the other railway
works as well which are nothing to do with Crossrail. Is that
not right?
5512. MS SINGLETON: That is true at the
moment, yes.
5513. CHAIRMAN: The East London Line,
what are the things that are going on that are going to take the
whole of this ten years?
5514. MS SINGLETON: As I have already
said, at the end of last year we had all of Durward Street constantly
dug up to look at what the structures underneath were, so if one
looks from 2007, so we have already had some work done, to 2017—
5515. CHAIRMAN: Is that utilities?
5516. MS SINGLETON: That was utilities
starting, yes. This year we have got the boreholes, next year
we have got utilities and then the main programme starts in 2010,
so effectively it is a ten-year programme for us.
5517. CHAIRMAN: Ms Lieven, you are not
only in very close touch with London Underground but they are
part of you, are they not, as it were?
5518. MS LIEVEN: Transport for London
is, my Lord, yes.
5519. CHAIRMAN: How are we going to get
a liaison with all the other people who are going to carry out
works in this immediate vicinity?
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