Crossrail Update
With Elizabeth Line construction past the 80% complete mark, winding down is now beginning. Think, for example, of those charged with procurement and letting contracts – the roles they were appointed to carry out have, for the most part, been discharged. The vast engine that has been built up to make Crossrail happen is finding that in some disciplines it is running out of things to do.
Crossrail procurement and internal audit staff have already transferred to Transport for London, a move that means their expertise remains available to TfL’s Crossrail Ltd subsidiary and partners but can also be called upon to support other projects.
Responsibility for operation of the Tunnelling and Underground Construction Academy (TUCA) at Ilford, where more than 16,000 Crossrail workers have received training, will transfer to TfL in January 2017. The £13 million academy opened in 2011, prompted by concerns that there were not enough people with the necessary skills and experience to build Crossrail. Back then there was much talk of creating a learning legacy with TUCA training workers for other infrastructure projects. Now, with Crossrail tunnelling done, it is time to see if TUCA can go it alone.
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