Examination of Witnesses (Questions 10820
- 10839)
10820. LORD YOUNG OF NORWOOD GREEN: Can we see
the loading bays?[19]
(Mr Andrade) The loading bays are confined to
the areas where carcass meat is handled, and that is on one side
of the east market and both sides of the west market.
10821. Four on the top of this diagram and then
two —
(Mr Andrade) Yes. There are four on the top, yes, two each
side on the west and the east and just two on the south side of
the west—the ones in Lindsey Street are just areas where
vehicles can park.
10822. CHAIRMAN: And what about the central
corridor, the Lindsey Street end? What sort of door or closure
is there there?
(Mr Andrade) Do you know, I should know the answer. I walk
through it every day and I never thought about that. It has not
got the same sliding doors that the service corridors have, but
there is a shutter that comes down, I think. Am I right?
10823. MR DINGEMANS: I would hate to
give evidence but I am being told that it is plastic strips. Would
you agree with that?
(Mr Andrade) Yes, you walk through those.
10824. CHAIRMAN: Do not worry, Mr Dingemans.
Lots of counsel have given evidence so far!
10825. Any re-examination?
10826. MR DINGEMANS: No. I think the
doors have been covered by the last question, thank you.
10827. CHAIRMAN: Thank you for coming.
The witness withdrew
10828. MR DINGEMANS: That is my evidence.
10829. CHAIRMAN: Any evidence, Mr Mould?
10830. MR MOULD: Mr Berryman very briefly,
just to deal with three points.
MR KEITH
BERRYMAN, recalled Examination
by MR MOULD
10831. MR MOULD: Mr Berryman, you are
well known to everybody so I need not take time introducing you.
Can we just touch very quickly on the position as regards the
proposed works for the eastern ticket hall, page 054?[20]
(Mr Berryman) Yes. This describes the works
included in the Bill, and consists of a number of significant
elements on the Lindsey Street site itself, but perhaps most significantly
in the matters that we are discussing it includes an escalator
box which goes right underneath Smithfield Market and would have
required the roof of the market to be temporarily supported whilst
it was constructed. As I said a lot in the Commons, anything in
engineering is possible, it is just a question of how much it
costs, and this really came into the category of anything is possible
but it would have been quite a difficult job. Fortunately we were
saved by the fact that the decision was made to close the Thameslink
branch, which goes across the middle, and that gave us the opportunity
to simplify the arrangements considerably (slide 056 displayed)
by turning the escalators through 90 degrees so they almost intersect
with the Thameslink lines—these would have been impossible
to build if Thameslink had still been in operation because they
would have been so very close to the operating line—and
rearrange the escalator access to get down to the level of the
platforms more conveniently without going into the market building.
At the same time a decision was made that this station entrance
would not have a ticket office, only machines, and that also allowed
us to significantly reduce the size of the works. So it has been
possible to produce a scheme now which fits entirely within this
box, the Lindsey Street box, without going into the market space
at all.
10832. Just staying with this, I want the Committee
to be hearing it from you as to what the likelihood is of this
particular provision being the final outcome. We have said "best
endeavours" to produce a scheme along these lines rather
than the earlier scheme. Can you help the Committee: what would
you expect to be the scheme that is built in this case?
(Mr Berryman) I would be absolutely astonished if the scheme
that is built is not something similar to this. The only reason
we kept the "best endeavours" thing in rather than just
saying a straight "we'll do it this way" is, obviously,
on the advice of lawyers, because we have not quite finished our
site investigation in the area. For the life of me, I cannot think
of anything that we could discover at this stage which would prevent
us doing that scheme as it is.
10833. MR MOULD: Thank you. Can we then,
please, turn to another point, and that is the question—
10834. LORD YOUNG OF NORWOOD GREEN: You
say you have done some site investigation.
(Mr Berryman) Yes, we have done the first round of site investigation.
This is not a matter that has come up very much but, obviously,
site investigation is an ongoing process, and the ground in this—not
so much just here but where the station platforms are—is
the most difficult geology on the site. So there is the potential
for some faults or something across the site. However, although
that would create difficulty with the tunnelling it would not
affect the construction of this box, if such a thing was found.
I cannot really think of anything which we are likely to find
which will prevent this box from being built.
10835. CHAIRMAN: Where is the access
going to be for the works on this box?
(Mr Berryman) The access will be mainly along this side,
here, the Lindsey Street side. The one-way system around here
comes round like that, and what we will be doing is using the
parking bays on this side of the road during the day for our delivery
vehicles to bring things in. We will also be taking, even though
we have no works in it, part of the lower basement of the market
building to find room for our site offices, because, you can take
it from me, the site is very constrictive, so to find some place
for site accommodation we will be using the lower basement of
the east market. The deliveries will be mainly via Lindsey Street
on the non-market side.
10836. Is there going to be spoil excavated
and taken away in lorries?
(Mr Berryman) There will be spoil excavated and taken away
in lorries. That will go out through this—there will also
be a site entrance here to allow concrete mixers and spoil lorries
to go into the site, and they will come out and go down that way.
10837. That is simply a matter of dust-sheeting
being efficient, is it?
(Mr Berryman) It is keeping everything wet, properly washing
the wheels of the lorries, and so on, and sheeting all the vehicles
that are used, yes, my Lord.
10838. MR MOULD: As we are on dust suppression
measures, could you explain the other measures that would be put
in place in relation to this worksite?
(Mr Berryman) I think the first activity that goes on on
here is demolition of the existing building. In a way, that is
probably the activity that would have the potential to generate
the most dust. The way that that will be dealt with is the fairly
standard way now in Central London these many years, where the
building is completely sheeted with plastic sheets which are taped
together to keep any dust which is generated inside that plastic
sheeting structure. Also, in this case, because this is a category
3 site, we will be using continuously running water sprays into
the site whilst the demolition takes place, because the best way
of suppressing dust is with water. Once the demolition is finished—
10839. LORD YOUNG OF NORWOOD GREEN: Is
there any asbestos on the site?
(Mr Berryman) We do not know, my Lord. Unfortunately, the
only way you can find that out is by an intrusive survey. If there
is asbestos on the site—and, of course, I should emphasise
it is hard for us to do an intrusive survey until we have got
the powers which will be conferred by this Bill—
19 Crossrail Ref: P73, Smithfield Market-Location
of Parking and Loading Bays (SCN-20080502-034) Back
20
Committee Ref: P73, Farringdon Station-Lindsay Street End-Interchange
Level 1 (LONDLB-23-04-054) Back
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