Railtrack’s £1bn Thameslink 2000 extension plans have been dealt a crippling blow by a planning inspector’s report.
The proposals, which would have linked the Thameslink line to 120 additional stations and involved a massive redevelopment of London Bridge Station, were dismissed by inspector David Ward following an inquiry held between June 2000 and May 2001.
Planning minister Lord Rooker said that new planning applications for the scheme would have to be submitted.
He said: “The inquiry inspector has found that there are some serious shortcomings in the present proposals.
“These relate to the proposed new concourses at London Bridge and Blackfriars Stations, and the proposed demolitions in the Borough High Street Conservation Area.
“The inspector has advised that the submitted applications should not be approved before these problems have been satisfactorily resolved.”
The inspector said that the design of the proposed new concourse and canopies at London Bridge Station would be “inappropriate to a major station in the capital”, while the proposed new single-storey concourse at Blackfriars Station would be “out of scale with other properties in the vicinity, with a devastating effect on the townscape”.
He also attacked proposals to demolish several listed buildings in the Borough High Street area.
Railtrack has refused to say how long the changes will set back the scheme, but any major delays could set back plans for Irvine Sellar’s London Bridge Tower, which relies heavily on renovations to the station.
EGi News 01/08/02
