London’s biggest infrastructure project has re-started
tunnelling work on the super sewer urgently needed to clean up the River
Thames.
Tideway, the company building the 25km super sewer to stop
sewage pollution in the River Thames, is restarting main tunnelling work after
all but essential and safety-critical activities were put on hold at the start
of the COVID-19 lockdown period.
In recent weeks, a series of detailed safety reviews has led
the company and its contractors to implement measures to protect its workers
and the wider community. The measures fit within the Construction Leadership
Council’s guidance and official public health advice, and include social
distancing and personal travel plans.
Work is now taking place on 21 Tideway sites, including underground
tunnelling from Fulham to Acton and tunnelling of the smaller Frogmore
Connection Tunnel in Wandsworth.
Tideway CEO, Andy Mitchell, said: “It was absolutely right
that we paused our activity at the start of the pandemic. Only by planning very
carefully what activities are safe are we getting our teams back to work. Our
measures have been developed with our workforce and contractors and are being
introduced after detailed safety reviews of every one of our sites. The
measures mean we are able to get more of our work back up and running, safely,
minimising delays to this vital project and contributing to wider efforts to
support the UK economy.”
Individual site travel plans have been drawn up to reduce
the impact on the public transport network. With around 1000 staff expected to
be working on site from this week, the majority will be using private
transport, or walking or cycling. Those who are travelling by public transport
will be avoiding peak times and following public health guidance. Tideway will
be keeping all activities and the new measures under review, in collaboration
with contractors and the wider workforce.
Those who can work from home will continue to do so.
Work on the 25km super sewer, which will run from Acton in
west London to Stratford in east London, started in 2016. More than 14km of
tunnel has now been constructed.
Tideway has a 24/7 helpdesk that can be contacted on 08000
30 80 80 or by emailing helpdesk@tideway.london for further information please visit the website https://www.tideway.london/
