Full steam ahead for Exhibition Road Transformation
26 March 2009
Funding package finalised and preparatory work now
underway
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster City
Council today announced that the funding package to deliver the
innovative Exhibition Road streetscape improvement project is now
completely finalised. The scheme is being delivered in two phases
and funding for the £18.8m second phase has now been secured.
This follows the Mayor of London’s announcement in January that
Transport for London (TfL) will provide total maximum funding of
£13.3 million towards the whole project to transform the Exhibition
Road area into one of the most important public spaces in London
and a major new user-friendly cultural venue for the 2012
Olympics.
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Westminster City
Council have now jointly agreed to contribute a further £6.1
million and £1 million respectively. Contractor Balfour Beatty has
been appointed to carry out the initial ‘pre-construction’ with
work due to start in October 2009.
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster Council
and TfL have been working jointly on proposals to improve the
environment around the world-class museums and institutions in the
Exhibition Road area for a number of years.
In line with the original plan by architects Dixon Jones, the
repaving of Exhibition Road as a single surface will extend from
South Kensington Station up to, but not including the junction of
Exhibition Road and Cromwell Road, then continuing north to the
junction with Kensington Gore at the entrance to Hyde Park.
Cllr Merrick Cockell, Leader of the Royal Borough of
Kensington and Chelsea, said:
“We are very pleased that funding for the Exhibition Road
project is now finalised. This is a significant step forward and
will allow detailed designs to be completed over the coming months.
The intention is for work to start this Autumn with the view that
is will completed by the end of 2011 – well ahead of the 2012
Olympic Games and Paralympics Games. The renewal of this iconic
cultural area will be a huge boost to residents and visitors
alike."
Cllr Colin Barrow, leader of Westminster City Council,
said:
"With the funding finalised we can now press ahead with the
improvements. Exhibition Road is home to some of London's finest
and most popular museums and the renewal of this area in time for
the 2012 Olympics will be a huge boost to London's cultural offer
for residents and visitors alike. We are fully committed in playing
our part in delivering the best possible scheme. We are already
investing in major improvements to the West End and Exhibition Road
will complement this work perfectly."
The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea is working closely
with the area’s world-leading museums, local businesses as well as
local residents and the Guide Dogs for the Blind Association and
other access and disability groups, to ensure that Exhibition
Road’s cultural heritage and unique character is retained, as well
as creating a safer and pedestrian friendly environment for
everyone to enjoy.
Kulveer Ranger, the Mayor of London's Director of
Transport Policy, said:
“The Exhibition Road area is home to some of Britain's key
museums and cultural institutions, which preserve and share the
heritage of London and the UK. We hope that this project will
result in a world leading example of shared public space, which
will make it an area that all Londoners and visitors will be able
to safely access and enjoy.
“Parts of the project will involve new approaches to street
space being taken, and we are pleased that Kensington & Chelsea
is working closely with an access group with the aim of ensuring
that the needs of all disability groups, in particular those with
limited mobility and the visually impaired, are taken into account
in the final design.”