Crossrail station at Kensal
Crossrail without Kensal will be a massive missed opportunity,
argues Councillor Sir Merrick Cockell.
It’s no secret that we are very keen on a Crossrail station at
Kensal in North Kensington and it’s no secret either that we are
not alone. Our list of supporters includes MPs, Members of
the London Assembly, major businesses, a neighbouring borough and,
many others too.
They have all looked at the case for a station and been
persuaded. One eminent Londoner has even described our case
as “overwhelming”, another as a “no-brainer”. So why then,
some two or three years after we began our campaign, do we find
ourselves still waiting anxiously for a verdict from the Crossrail
authorities? Well I’m not sure in truth, but here’s one
possibility:
Crossrail has been long in the planning. The idea for such
a line first surfaced in the 1940s, the term Crossrail was coined
in the 1970s. Over the decades a Crossrail plan has been developed,
and refined many times over. Given that history it wouldn’t be at
all surprising if devoted transport planners, having achieved their
optimally rational master plan, found a suggested tweak from the
Johnny come latelys at Kensington and Chelsea rather
irritating.
Well we can all sympathise with that, but the fact is that
sometimes a change of plan, even a comparatively late one, can
often work out for the best:
No one now laments for example that it was Marlon Brando who
ended up playing Vito Corleone, rather than Laurence Olivier, as
the studio originally intended. And who now can imagine
anyone other than Peter Falk as Columbo. Well the writers
could: they wanted the crumpled detective to be played by Bing
Crosby!
And it’s not just in show business where late changes come good;
just think of Churchill’s wartime speeches. To us they seem
things of crystalline perfection but the archive shows that in fact
Sir Winston went on correcting and refining them right up until
broadcast. Point is: the great man never ever let himself
become the prisoner of an earlier draft.
Economically speaking our country is in dire straits right now
and the Government’s focus is very properly on how to boost
growth. That’s why they are changing the planning system and
it is why they have also said this: “benefits to the economy should
be an important consideration when other development-related
consents are being determined, including... transport
consents.”
Well it would be hard to think of a project that chimes more
perfectly with Government aspirations and policy than a Crossrail
station at Kensal.
There is some 67 acres of land there just minutes from central
London, all waiting to be developed. But the Kensal area, one
of the largest but least recognised areas of deprivation in the
Capital, is poorly served by public transport. A Crossrail
station would turbocharge the development potential of the site and
lead to thousands of new homes, thousands of jobs and a smorgasbord
of new businesses and community facilities as well. There
would be new economic activity worth hundreds of millions.
As for the three tests set for us by Boris Johnson when he
visited the site back in 2009, the first two of those are already
sorted.
It is plain that so long as we get a timely go-ahead, our
station can be built without delaying the overall construction
timetable. On the construction cost, the Council is so
determined to transform life opportunities in North Kensington, it
has underwritten that itself.
That only leaves operational performance. Such testing as
has thus far been possible suggests that at the very least the
advantages of a station at Kensal equal the disadvantages.
The clincher for us is that Crossrail needs to find somewhere in
central west London to turn trains around. They can choose
merely to achieve that narrow engineering objective, or they can
locate the turnaround station at Kensal and thereby unlock the
largest regenerative boost in a generation for North Kensington,
North Westminster and South Brent.
In the end it’s as simple as that.
If you agree that a Crossrail station at Kensal will unlock the
area’s regeneration potential add your comments to my blog,
and visit the Crossrail page to find out how to show your
support.
Add your comments:
Comments sent in
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1. On 1 November Harry wrote:
Having against the odds managed to run a small but growing local
business in the area now for the past 15 years i can say that the
joy that would be generated through out the areas residents on
hearing that our needs had been recognised by the granting of a
station and the regeneration this would bring would be
inestimable.
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2. On 1 November Jorge wrote:
We fully support the Kensal Crossrail station given the powerful
regeneration process in can create in our surrounding
neighborhoods. I believe it will bring a much needed new economic
impetus to the area, even before the station is built. Quick
transport is a luxury that cannot be underestimated in London. I do
not understand why the list of supporters is not in the thousands
already. I think a lot of people have not yet been asked what they
think and some initiative should be created to achieve this. This
is not just RBKC but South Brent and Westminster are huge
beneficiaries too. We are happy to help with any initiative to this
respect.
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3. On 2 November Michael wrote:
Seeing the effect of Imperial Wharf Station on the Lots Road
area has been,and will continue to be.. a joy. Knowing the Kensal
area very well both "The Rise" and "The Green" a turnaround at
Kensal must be the Crossrail authorities only course of action.
Fingers crossed for Crossrail.
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4. On 2 November Stephen wrote:
If Crossrail were a "normal" tube line, then the case would be
clear. But it isn't. Crossrail is a line designed more for the
outer suburbs rather than the inner ones. This is no different to
other parts of London, the Waterloo and London Bridge run have very
few stations in the final run into the terminus. The services which
Kensal would take, currently planned to terminate in the sidings,
will in 15 years time probably be heading off to Oxford, Newbury or
Milton Keynes. Building Kensal now would prevent those future
extensions. I therefore oppose building Kensal as that longer term
vision really matters from a broader London and national basis.
The borough would be best in focussing on regeneration efforts
around Old Oak, which could provide a more local DLR style railway
between Paddington, Ealing and White City which definitely would
have one (or more) stops in the Kensal area.
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5. On 17 November Sylvie wrote:
The Crossrail link will make Kensal far more attractive for
commercial and residential purposes; it's a must for urban
regeneration.
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6. On 24 November Derek wrote:
I am not at all convinced by the theatrical and somewhat
dramatic case put by Councillor Sir Merrick Cockell. Crossrail at
Kensal may seem like a development opportunity and it may be
difficult to argue against it with so any esteemed supporters.
However, living as I do in North Kensington, it is difficult not to
be concerned particularly considering the unabated development of
the area. For example the homes to be built on the Silchester
Garages site opposite Latimer Road Station, the Secondary School to
be built on the Kensington Leisure Centre Site, also near Latimer
Road Station, the Imperial College Project to mention just 3 major
current projects. I am informed by my neighbours of longer standing
in the area than I, that North Kensington has continually undergone
redevelopment but with little regard to joined up thinking in terms
of infrastructure and capacity of the area to deal with the
consequences of such development. Certainly in my own limited
experience I would suggest that while one could be overcome with
enthusiasm for such theatrics as Councillor Cockell argues, there
is little or no follow threw in terms of supporting, encouraging
and enabling local Residents and/or the infrastucture to cope with
such huge changes. So, yes, lets consider all the benefits of
Crossrail in Kensal, but also be honest about the ongoing costs to
the infrastructure and residents and businesses in coping with
it.
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7. On 28 December Justin wrote:
It is clear that this would massively benefit the area in terms
of additional trade and regeneration of a large area. It would be a
tragedy if this economic boost for an area was ignored for red tape
or other bureaucratic reasons. Crossrail needs to come to the
area.
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