Old Street Roundabout Project

TfL is accountable for the delivery of the project. The current Programme and Project Authority is £112 million, with roughly 1/3 of the cost for the highway works and 2/3 for the underground works connected to the station entrance and retail concourse.

This is an extremely complex project in a busy location on the Inner Ring Road above an Underground and Network Rail station. A key requirement of the project has been for the road and station to remain open and accessible throughout the works, which has further complicated delivery. 

While good progress has been made, there remain cost and programme pressures that TfL is currently working hard to address with its principal contractor.

The project has experienced several delays for multiple reasons, including the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which shut the site for three months, followed by months of social distancing measures, which, in such a confined work site, significantly added to delays. 

The condition of the underground assets was found to be poor, resulting in significant additional work to ensure compliance with fire and electrical safety standards, and to provide an essential upgraded power supply. The contractor uncovered a range of previously uncharted utilities, which required safe and controlled removal before further work could continue.