London mayor Sadiq Khan could be asked to help fund replacing the lifts at Greenwich Foot Tunnel, Greenwich Council’s deputy leader said – after her own council officers wrongly claimed that users were experiencing a “trouble-free service”.
An answer written in Averil Lekau’s name claimed that a strategy to keep the troubled lifts running in the tunnel was going well, despite the fact that both the north and south lifts have suffered from closures in recent months.
But when Labour councillor Calum O’Byrne Mulligan pointed out how wrong the answer was, Lekau departed from the script and said she wanted to get outside funding to fund the replacement.
Lifts in both the Greenwich and Woolwich tunnels have been unreliable since they were installed more than a decade ago as part of a botched refurbishment programme, when they replaced the original lifts that had been in place since the tunnels opened in the early 20th century.
The lifts were patched up in 2021, but lengthy breakdowns still take place as the council now struggles to get parts.
Problems in the Greenwich lifts have been felt particularly badly because it is on a key cycle commuting route to Canary Wharf, and also links Cutty Sark Gardens with Island Gardens, with its views across the Thames. The north lift has been out of service for several weeks.
When O’Byrne Mulligan, who represents Creekside, raised the problem at Wednesday’s council meeting, he was told by Lekau in a written answer that after the lifts were patched up, “so far, the strategy is proving successful with largely trouble-free service. This should continue for another few years until major investment is procured for replacement of the elevators.”
Most answers at Greenwich Council meetings are not written by cabinet members, but by officers. For many years Greenwich’s cabinet members have often been caught by surprise when they discover what has been written in their name – and so it proved when O’Byrne Mulligan rose to gently point out to Lekau that her answer was nonsense.
“I’m afraid I do have to question the answer about the Greenwich Foot Tunnel because we had both lifts out for a number of weeks,” he said.
“The south lift is back working now but the north lift has been out of action for a month and a half. This matter is not just for those who, like myself, commute using the tunnel, but it’s vital for those with prams and wheelchairs.
“I’ve seen people get to the north end and have to turn back because they’re not able to get up,” he said, asking if the council had produced an equalities impact assessment on the current state of the tunnel.
In response, Lekau said the lifts were “ancient”, even though they were only installed 11 years ago, in a project overseen by her cabinet colleague Denise Hyland.
“I really do empathise with you on this one. We are dealing with a really ancient system of lifts at both ends really, and getting supplies in to repair them sometimes takes a while,” she said.
“This has just been going on for a long period and, as far as I’m concerned, what it needs is a complete refurb and new lifts really. But that’s a huge investment that’s, you know, will be nigh on £5 million.
“I’m tempted to write to the mayor and see what support we could get because it’s really part of our transport strategy. It’s key. It’s really important to ensure that those foot tunnels are accessible to all.”
The tunnels were originally run as part of London’s city-wide government, but were handed over to Greenwich when the Greater London Council was abolished in 1986. They have stayed with Greenwich ever since, despite the tunnels providing an important cross-river link used by people from across the capital.
A users’ group for the foot tunnel was founded to address the problems caused by the refurbishment fiasco, which included fitting the Greenwich lifts with heavy glass doors, a late change to the design. An independent report criticised the council and its contractors. But the Friends of Greenwich and Woolwich Foot Tunnel disbanded in frustration two years ago.
Relations with Tower Hamlets Council, which owns half of the Greenwich tunnel, have been tricky, as it has objected to Greenwich’s plans to allow cycling in the crossing. Earlier this year one Labour councillor in the east London borough called for barriers to be placed at the northern end to stop cyclists “zooming through”.
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