Sadiq Khan has spent around £942million on new trains for England’s capital – most of which are stored in Spain.
New trains for the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) are scheduled to start operating by spring – eight years after the project was set in motion.
But since there is insufficient space to store the whole fleet of trains in London, 90 per cent of those that have been built so far are being held by Spanish manufacturer CAF.
The current DLR trains will be replaced by 54 new trains, which have a lifespan of around 30 years.
The current DLR trains will be replaced by 54 new trains, which have a lifespan of around 30 years
PA
The London Mayor’s Transport for London (TfL) cast blame on “our main contractor to build the required depot going into administration” last year.
Buckingham Group fell into administration while it owed £103million, reportedly – with a spokesman telling the BBC that the “Ukraine conflict” drove “extreme inflation” which culminated in its collapse.
Buckingham Group was originally due to organise the renovation of Liverpool FC’s Anfield stadium, as well as an extension to the DLR’s east London depot in Beckton.
The depot’s delay has postponed the new trains being brought to London as there is nowhere to store them while keeping the old trains working as normal, TfL has said.
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In November 2023, one of the new trains – while being tested – slipped through a stop signal in “low adhesion conditions”.
Engineers noted that the rest of the new trains could do the same, which led the testing being paused while authorities decreased speed limits across parts of the DLR network.
The cost of the renovation of the new network increased from £880million last summer to £942million.
The most recent hike of £35million was reported to TfL’s programmes and investment committee at the end of last year.
The cost of the renovation of the new network has increased from £880 million last summer to £942 million
PA
A TfL spokesman said: “We’re introducing 54 new trains to replace the 33 oldest trains in our fleet, some of which are more than 30 years old.
“The new trains will help us to improve the frequency and reliability of services and support population and employment growth across the network, particularly in parts of the Royal Docks and the Isle of Dogs where the DLR is the main transport option.
“These trains are being kept in storage in Spain while we wait for them to come into service. The delay in them coming to the UK was partially due to the signalling issues but also a result of our main contractor to build the required depot going into administration.
“We’re working hard to ensure they come into service as quickly as possible and before the end of this year.”